An internal rift in Australian football history has been reopened in what is meant to be an attempt to heal it, with Football Australia announcing the “historic” recognition of the 1975 team as the true “First Matildas”. The title of Australia’s first national women’s football team had been disputed for several years between two different sides: one that played an international tournament in Hong Kong in 1975, and one three years later that played a tournament in the 1978 Women’s World Invitational Tour in Taiwan. The friction over the 1975 side being the First Matildas came down to the side being almost entirely composed of St George Budapest players bar two, and not being the result of an official national selection process.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Now, Football Australia has deepened the fracture in its attempt to bury the hatchet over the recognition of the First Matildas. Thanks to an expert panel including members of FIFA, the International Centre for Sports Studies, and several football historians, the now “true” First Matildas are the sixteen women who went to Hong Kong in 1975, alongside coach Joe O’Connor. “After careful assessment, it was determined that the 1975 team met all necessary criteria.
The team played against recognised national teams, wore the green and gold with the Australian Coat of Arms emblem, and comprised players who were eligible to represent Australia at the international level,” a statement from .