The Matildas' Road to the 2027 World Cup in Brazil
With the FIFA Women's World Cup heading to Brazil in 2027, the Matildas' preparation is already well underway. Between a home Asian Cup campaign, international friendlies, and a genuinely global schedule of fixtures, here's how Australia's build-up toward the next World Cup is taking shape.
A Packed Preparation Calendar
Head coach Joe Montemurro's squad has spent 2026 building tournament-level experience through a demanding fixture schedule — headlined by the home Asian Cup campaign, but also including the FIFA Series 2026, a newly introduced international competition format, and a run of international windows against varied opposition.
The FIFA Series 2026
Australia's group in the FIFA Series 2026 saw them open against Malawi, a side they'd never previously faced in senior international football, before a further match against either Kenya or India depending on results. Facing genuinely unfamiliar opposition is deliberately valuable preparation — testing adaptability against teams the squad has no existing tactical history against.
🇧🇷 THE ROAD TO 2027
The Big Test: Germany in October
Perhaps the clearest marker of Australia's ambitions is a scheduled clash with Germany, one of the top-ranked nations in women's football, in October 2026 in Karlsruhe. Matches against genuinely elite opposition like this serve a different purpose than the FIFA Series fixtures — less about adaptability, more about benchmarking the squad directly against the standard they'll need to match in Brazil.
Sam Kerr's Club Form Feeding Into the Squad
With Sam Kerr continuing to contribute goals and assists following her move to Gotham FC in the NWSL, her club form provides an encouraging sign heading into the World Cup cycle — sustained sharpness at club level generally translates into greater international readiness, particularly for a player central to the Matildas' attacking identity.
Learning From the Asian Cup Run
Reaching the final of a home Asian Cup, even without winning it, gave the current squad genuine tournament-pressure experience — playing knockout football in front of massive, expectant home crowds. That kind of high-stakes match experience is difficult to replicate in friendlies, and it's exactly the sort of preparation a World Cup campaign benefits from most.
What to Watch as 2027 Approaches
Expect the build-up to intensify through further international windows, continued testing against a mix of unfamiliar and elite opposition, and growing public attention as the World Cup draws closer. For a nation that hosted the tournament in 2023 and has kept women's football firmly in the mainstream conversation since, expectations for Brazil 2027 will be significant.
Test Your Knowledge of the Matildas
From Asian Cup campaigns to World Cup preparation, our quiz covers the Matildas and Australian football's biggest storylines. See how much you know heading into the next big tournament.