The Wellington Phoenix play Adelaide United at Eden Park on Saturday night, the first time football has been played at the home of rugby and cricket since the All Whites played Israel in an Olympic Games qualifier in 1988.
On November 14, 2009 Wellington’s Westpac Stadium hosted 35,194 fans to witness the national team qualify for the FIFA World Cup and McKavanagh says there is no reason why Auckland can’t put its hand up to host games of similar calibre.
“Auckland has more football players and fans than anywhere else in the country,” McKavanagh says. “But it’s a competitive market out there now with a new stadium in Dunedin, a new one planned for Christchurch and Wellington having produced that magical atmosphere two years ago.
“The Rugby World Cup showed that Aucklanders will get out for the right event though and we think they’ll respond for the first chance in 23 years to see football at Eden Park.”
McKavanagh also outlined the schedule for around 22 All Whites matches over the next two years, pending successful progress through qualification stages. Five of those matches would be at home, including five World Cup qualifiers and a Waitangi Day test.
“We’ve got some big matches coming up on the road to Brazil, hopefully culminating in one huge week in November 2013 with both legs of the intercontinental play-off,” he says.
“There’s a desire to spread the All Whites game around the country but there’s a number of factors to take into account when selecting venues, including the support of local fans and the reality that it costs up to a quarter of a million dollars to assemble our national team in New Zealand from around the world.”
All Whites schedule
2012
February 29 – International match (away)
June 1-12 – FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Stage 2 (Fiji), up to five matches.
August 15 – International match (away)
September 7-11 – FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Stage 3* (one home, one away)
October 12-16 – FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Stage 3* (one home, one away)
2013
February 6 – International match (home)
March 22-26 – FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Stage 3* (one home, one away)
June 15-30 – FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013*
August 14 – International match (away)
September 6-10 – International match (away)
October 11-15 – International match (away)
November 15-19 – FIFA World Cup Intercontinental Play-off* (home and away)
*if qualified
Story courtesy of New Zealand Football.
For more on New Zealand football go to www.nzfootball.co.nz

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