The Multicultural Advantage
Why the Asia Cup and other football tournaments thrive in Australia
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Week 2 of the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 is in the bag. We’ve just had two well earned rest days (for fans and players alike), and tonight the Matildas kick off the quarter finals at Perth Rectangular Stadium, against DPR Korea who created drama in their game against China by threatening to walk off the pitch after a VAR decision went against them.
So that should be a bit of fun.
This is the third major tournament that Australia have held in 11 years. The Men’s Asia Cup (2015) and the Women’s World Cup (2023) were record breakers, and this Women’s Asia Cup is no different. The opening match, with it’s 44,000+ crowd, had more in attendance than the entire 2011 tournament, also held in Australia.
While Matildas Fever caught on after the World Cup, it’s the group stage games featuring non-home teams that give Australia the advantage at these tournaments.
Science Fiction, Double Header
Oddly feeling jetlagged after a flight from the Gold Coast to Sydney (in our defence, we had been in Perth the day before - 3 time zones in 2 days took it out of us), we missed kickoff in the DPR Korea v Bangladesh game at Parramatta Stadium. At lunch time on a Friday, and featuring a team with no travelling fans, we didn’t expect much from the crowd but as we walked up to the stadium, we heard the ref’s whistle and the usual audience sounds that go with it.
The game was a comfortable 5-0 win for the North Koreans who had a few ‘fans’ wearing the official AFC sanctioned merchandise - whether they were genuinely supportive of the team or taking the piss, I’m not sure (I’d put money on the latter) - but the team gave each stand a thankful bow before they headed to the changing rooms and, no doubt, back to their fully unrestricted hotel rooms.
The big show though, was later that night, with China taking on Uzbekistan. The Uzbeks spent more time on the floor than my unaddressed dirty laundry and it wasn’t a great game, but China punished them for their shithousing, coming away with a 3-0 win. Fresh from watching the Iranians do the same thing to the Aussies, the neutral fans in attendance quickly showed their dislike for the time-wasting tactics as well.
Sydney has a huge Chinese population and they turned out in force, with over 8,000 people cheering them on and taking my usual parking spot in North Parramatta. There was a sea of red in the eastern stand and every fan was on their feet whenever China had the ball - and they all went home happy after this one.
Being in the same group, we also bore witness to a derby of sorts, with China v DPR Korea on Matchday 3. The Koreans were the higher ranked team, but China looked good against Uzbekistan and have plenty of history in the Asia Cup, so this was a competitive fixture to look forward to.
Once again, the Chinese were in full voice, and once again, the North Korean merch was dotted around the stands - though this time it seemed there was a small section of South Korean fans also lending their support to their neighbours. Having been to the DMZ a couple of years ago, I wasn’t entirely surprised to see this - there does seem to be a push for Korean unity within the Korea Republic, though it’s hard to tell what’s genuine and what’s propaganda (kind of like the people in Parramatta wearing the merch).
Where DPR Korea were humble in victory against Bangladesh, they were anything but in this game, as things weren’t going their way. China scored late in the first half but the goal was flagged for offside - only to be overturned by VAR. This was followed by a protest from the North Korean players and staff, threatening to walk off the field.
This went on for a few minutes and we genuinely thought we might have a forfeit on our hands. The ref blew the whistle for half time without any further play, and DPR Korea reluctantly took the pitch to finish the game in the second half. China finished up 2-1 winners, topping the group and securing a quarter final in Sydney, while North Korea were tasked with the logistics of moving their base over to Perth to face the Matildas.
Asylum for the Iranian Women’s Team
This is an evolving situation - no players have been named and it may be outdated by the time it’s published. It’s important in the context of a multicultural Australia though - hence, it’s staying in.
Being part of the Asian Confederation, the ever-troubled Middle East (or West Asia) competes alongside the east Asian countries.
America started to bomb the ever living fuck out of Iran around the time the tournament started, and there were reports that the Iranian women’s team were under the strict control of minders that were dictating their every move.
In their opening game, the Iranian women chose not to sing the national anthem - a direct disobedience of their orders - but against the Matildas on Matchday 2, they sung and saluted to the flag. Clearly being a response to having their lives and/or livelihoods threatened, later in the week, 5 of the players escaped from the team camp and were granted humanitarian visas in Australia. The fate of the remainder of the players is still unknown, but Australia, along with the US President, are on-board with keeping them from going back to the warzone that is Iran.
Iran is obviously disputing this and saying they’d be welcomed with open arms back home - but the open arms are right here on Australian shores. A-League team, Brisbane Roar, has even posted that the players are welcome to come and train with them unconditionally.
As of writing this (a few hours before publishing it), the latest news on Google shows that one of the players granted asylum has changed her mind, and that 2 more players have been granted the same visa as the others.
There’s a detailed discussion with Craig Foster on the ABC from a few days ago which explains the situation far better than I can - here.
Pure Vibes - India v Chinese Taipei
On a more positive note - India v Chinese Taipei was a party.
I’d previously seen India v Vietnam in Perth where Vietnamese fans made up the majority of the crowd - a great showing from them, but a little disappointing to see that the Indians hadn’t turned up.
Parramatta was a different story though. Sitting closer to the Chinese Taipei (or Taiwanese) fans in the first half, they were making a hell of a ruckus themselves.
For the first half, a particularly boisterous Taiwanese fan caught our attention. With the loudest clap I’ve ever heard, he rallied the fans into chants throughout the half. After the game, an article seems to suggest that this ‘fan’ was actually an ex-coach of the team, Kuei Jen Chen, and he was ejected for using ‘Taiwan’ instead of ‘Chinese Taipei’ in his chants. He was able to escape securities clutches by clapping towards them, throwing them violently against a nearby wall and disrupting the rotation of the Earth as we know it.
There were also Taiwanese flags confiscated and security was roundly booed for doing so - though it was an entirely unsurprising reaction from the AFC and stadium staff, who would rather save face than let people do dangerous things like singing songs about their country.
Indian player, Manisha Kalyan, scored a goal-of-the-tournament contender with a wicked free kick that went in off the underside of the crossbar and equalised the game, looking like it would be 1-1 at half time. India’s defense let them down though, and they ended up losing the game 3-1, and packing their bags for the long trip home.
In the second half though, we relocated to the lower tier of the east stand, where the two sets of fans were only a few bays from each other. While Chinese Taipei were singing for their winning team, the Indian fans were bringing the beats.
A Dhol player (who I’ve just found on Insta - @dholwali) - would rally the team during breaks in play with what my untrained ear can only describe as Bollywood rhythms. Basically, the kind of beat that you’d have to be dead inside to not want to dance to.
So with India’s defeat, that sent them packing along with Vietnam, Bangladesh and Iran.
The quarter finals begin tonight - Friday 13th (spooky) with the added incentive that anyone who wins a quarter final also qualifies for the World Cup in Brazil in 2027. The fixtures are:
Australia v DPR Korea (Perth)
China v Chinese Taipei (Perth)
South Korea v Uzbekistan (Sydney)
Japan v Philippines (Sydney)
With large populations of fans of pretty much all of these teams (bar North Korea and possibly Uzbekistan), the crowds should be as much of a spectacle as the football.
My prediction for the games is a pretty safe one - China, South Korea and Japan will progress - and my quiet optimism of Australia getting through easily has taken a little bit of a beating, but I think we’ll have the mentality and experience to stave off the higher-ranked North Koreans in front of a packed out Perth Rectangular stadium.
Up the Tillies. LFG.
