The arrival of winter in Dunedin marks the time for some beautiful auroras and stargazing, events such as the Midwinter Carnival, as well as a few student flats having to rug up a bit more than usual.
While these are regular annual activities for Dunedin, something special comes this way in July — Dunedin is fortunate enough to be hosting six matches of the Fifa Women’s World Cup, including one of New Zealand’s matches, against Switzerland.
Co-hosting an event as big as the World Cup between ourselves and Australia has the magnitude to generate huge social and economic benefits for New Zealand, as well as leaving a lasting legacy for women’s sport in this country.
These are the events that can inspire our young wahine to get out and have a go at a sport they may not have considered trying before, looking to become the next Kiwi football star.
The last Women’s World Cup in France had a combined 1.1 billion viewers over the tournament, and this time around will be a great opportunity for us to show off the unique culture of Dunedin and our landscape.
Our Government is also supporting regionally-led programmes alongside the tournament, which aim to empower and encourage young wahine in confidence, resilience and leadership skills through local workshops and symposiums.
We invested $1.6 million into the Ōtepoti region alone to support the stadium’s needs for these events, and the training facilities for the teams playing, part of the $19 million across the motu invested in World Cup facilities here in Aotearoa.
These upgrades are critical for not only the success of the tournament but will also go a long way to supporting the local community, football clubs and the many other sporting codes that use these facilities.
Investments like this help to put us in a stronger position bidding for international events in the future.
It is great for cities such as Dunedin to have the brilliant Forsyth Barr stadium that boost our international appeal — it’s hard to complain about the weather conditions in a fully covered stadium.
Thank you in advance to all the amazing football fans who will be volunteering at the matches to ensure everyone has a wonderful time at the events — we all appreciate your hard work, your spirit and your passion for the beautiful game.
I’ll be looking to catch a few games across the country, and hope all of you can, too.
Māuri ora and go the Football Ferns!
