The Australian bid to host the 2023 Women's World Cup has been "put on hold" after Football Federation Australia said that it was "giving no consideration" to any tournament until there was "major reform within FIFA," according to Sebastian Hassett of THE AGE. FFA was "unmoved on Monday by suggestions" from FIFA Audit & Compliance Committee Independent Chair Domenico Scala that Russia's 2018 and Qatar's 2022 hosting rights "could be revoked if allegations of corruption were sustained." Only last month, FFA revealed its "Whole of Football Plan," including an ambition to host the women's global showpiece in eight years' time. But with "repeated scandals engulfing FIFA in recent weeks and an ongoing FBI investigation revealing the extent of corruption inherent within the organisation," Australian football authorities have decided not to bid for major events in the "near future." An FFA spokesperson said, "FFA has made it clear that major reform is needed. FIFA's problems
are deep-rooted and tangled in a culture that has developed over
decades." Although FFA is "interested in hosting FIFA events again, it believes change will not happen any time soon." The spokesperson added, "Until
such time that the existing governance model is overhauled, it's hard
to imagine the circumstances in which FFA would put Australia forward as
a bidding nation" (THE AGE, 6/8).
