FIFA has confirmed Team Base Camps for the already qualified 29 teams for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™.
Zambia who are in Group C alongside Spain, Japan and Costa Rica will be based in Hamilton where they will play two matches.
The Copper Queens will play Japan on July 22 and Costa Rica on July 31 against Japan and Costa Rica at Waikato Stadium.
The other match against Spain on July 26 will be at the iconic Eden Park Stadium in Auckland.
Zambia will have Kirikirikoa as their training camp in Hamilton.
For the first time in FIFA Women’s World Cup™ history, competing countries will use dedicated Team Base Camps in next year’s tournament. A Team Base Camp (TBC) is the “home away from home” for teams and includes a training site and accommodation.
In Australia, 14 TBCs have been confirmed across five Host Cities and two regional centres for the 14 qualified teams that will play group matches in Australia.
In Aotearoa New Zealand, 15 TBCs have been confirmed across four Host Cities and three regional centres for the 15 qualified teams that will play group matches in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The three teams that qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 via the Play-Off Tournament in February 2023 will select their TBC after qualification.
Following the draw for the tournament in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau on 22 October, the 29 qualified teams visited the short-listed TBC sites in the country where they were drawn to play their group matches and then submitted their preferred TBC options to FIFA. Following each team’s selections, FIFA confirmed the TBCs for the 29 qualified nations.
FIFA Chief Women’s Football Officer Sarai Bareman said that the addition of TBCs at the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time will ensure that teams and players are provided with the best possible platform to perform at their peak.
“Our mission for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 is to go ‘Beyond Greatness’, and to do that we must provide elite environments for the 32 teams to train, rest and recover,” Bareman said.
“With great support from our Host Countries, Governments, and the Host Cities, FIFA will provide each team with the best training and preparation environment possible, enabling them to focus on their performances at the tournament while at the same time offering them the chance to connect with people and communities where they are based.”
“FIFA is committed to enhancing the standards and conditions for teams at each FIFA Women’s World Cup, and the introduction of dedicated Team Base Camps is a clear demonstration of that commitment and our drive to grow and develop women’s football.”
The selection of TBCs in Tauranga, Palmerston North/Te Papa-i-Oea and Christchurch/Ōtautahi in Aotearoa New Zealand, as well as Central Coast/Darkinyung and Moreton Bay/Kabi Kabi in Australia means that seven teams will be based outside of tournament Host Cities, expanding the reach and impact of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 beyond major metropolitan areas.
[FAZ]
