Football: 2023 Fifa Women's World Cup optimistic over visitor numbers

A light show in Auckland celebrated one year to go until the Women's World Cup. Photo / Supplied

The 2023 Fifa Women's World Cup organisers remain bullish about projected visitor numbers ahead of the tournament, hopeful that thousands of football fans will flock to this country.

The countdown to the event begun in earnest on Wednesday, with celebrations on both sides of the Tasman to mark one year until the opening game at Eden Park on July 20 next year.

That match will feature the Football Ferns and a yet to be confirmed opponent, with the draw to be completed on October 22.

The original bid document around economic impact envisaged up to 25,000 supporters making the trip to New Zealand.

Those calculations were made before the Covid pandemic, but officials are hopeful as borders reopen and travel resumes.

"That was an early target and we haven't done any further formal work around that," New Zealand chief operating officer Jane Patterson told the Herald. "But anecdotally we get the sense that 2023 represents a year that people will be back travelling. And from what we saw in France in2019, a lot of fans travel to follow their teams.

"So some of those numbers that were given as part of the bid are achievable but we have to wait and see how this next 12 months roll out and people's willingness to travel again."

The other key factor will be the draw, as certain teams (United States, Netherlands, Japan and England, among others) traditionally attract a large travelling support.

Like Australia, New Zealand will host 16 nations during the group stages. In a tournament first, teams will stay at base camps and shuttle between match venues, allow event fever to spread to the regions and around the country.

It will be a massive logistical exercise, with around 30 training venues (10 paired with the stadiums and the others attached to base camps).

Patterson said everything was "on time and on track" despite the Covid-induced delays.

The draw is the next major milestone, while tickets go on sale from October 6, priced from $20 for adults and $10 for children.

"We are committed to making it feasible for all New Zealand fans and the pricing will reflect that," said Patterson.

Aside from 24 group matches, New Zealand will also host two quarter-finals and a semifinal.

An early legacy of the tournament was achieved on Wednesday, with Football Ferns striker Paige Satchell committing to the Wellington Phoenix women's team for the upcoming A-League season.

The 30-cap Fern had options, after performing well for Canberra United and Sydney FC in recent years, but wanted to prioritise game time ahead of the World Cup and also take the chance to play with prospective international team mates on home soil.

"There are some other girls in the team that could also potentially be in the Ferns squad so that'll be great to play alongside them and get to know them a little bit more," said the 24-year-old.

"It's great that we can play at home during the A-League season and continue that at the World Cup. It will really build momentum leading up to the tournament, getting some support from fans in New Zealand."