A record-breaking tournament has continued with an Aotearoa New Zealand family on Monday purchasing the 1,500,000th ticket sold at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.
The milestone tickets were purchased by Maria Strong, organising a family outing to the Group G fixture between Italy and Argentina at Auckland’s Eden Park to celebrate her son’s 12th birthday.
Mrs Strong, her husband and three children were invited to meet FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who offered them the opportunity to attend the remaining matches in the tournament at the Auckland venue. President Infantino said it was an honour to celebrate the 1,500,000-ticket milestone with Maria Strong’s family.
“It was great to meet the family that has bought the 1,500,000-ticket, they are a family from Auckland with three children and they have a passion for the game,” said Mr. Infantino. “I enjoyed my time with them, and it was a real pleasure to invite them to every game here in Auckland, so they can enjoy more family time here at this wonderful stadium. Every match at Eden Park so far has had a great atmosphere and I’m sure the upcoming matches will be the same.”
It is the latest achievement for a tournament which has already reached several milestones and broken many records, both globally and in the two host nations. With 1.5m tickets now sold, the sales target has been passed only five days into the tournament, thus ensuring that these finals are set to be the most attended FIFA Women’s World Cup™ in history, surpassing the previous record held by the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015™. The opening games in the tournament have also seen record attendances for a women’s football match in both Australia (75,784 for Australia v Republic of Ireland) and Aotearoa New Zealand (42,137 for New Zealand v Norway).
Attending with her husband, Jason Roxburgh, and their children Isobel (12), Boston (11) and Harry (9), Mrs Strong said it has been a wonderful experience and easy to organise.
“Boston is a real football-loving fanatic so we thought attending this match would be a great family outing,” said Mrs Strong. “We purchased the tickets last night and it’s been such a great night: we’re from Botany in Auckland, so caught the train in and even though it’s a school night, it’s been amazing and so easy.”
With a family-friendly atmosphere and world-class football, Mrs Strong said the family was instantly hooked.
“Aside from when Boston is playing, we haven’t watched much football, but we loved this game, have absolutely loved the atmosphere, and we will be back to watch,” she added.
