The NRMA Insurance Western Sydney Wanderers will celebrate Harmony Day through a range of clinics and events leading into the Hyundai A-League Round 24 match against Adelaide United in the club’s penultimate home fixture of the season.
Harmony Day is an extremely significant occasion to the club and one that calls for cultural respect for all who call Australia home and a celebration of Western Sydney’s cultural diversity.
Western Sydney is one of the most diverse areas in Australia, with 38% of the population speaking a language other than English at home, and up to 90% in some suburbs. Some of Australia’s largest non-English speaking population groups are found in Western Sydney, and as such the region remains Australia’s epicentre of multiculturalism and migration.
Western Sydney Wanderers CEO John Tsatsimas said the club was proud to champion the principles of Harmony Day.
“The underlying purposes of Harmony Day and the Western Sydney Wanderers are intrinsically unified: the same values of inclusiveness, respect and understanding celebrated by Harmony Day are woven into the fabric of the Western Sydney Wanderers,” said Tsatsimas.
“We are privileged to host the most culturally diverse supporter base in the country and since the club’s inception in 2012 we have celebrated bringing people from different cultural backgrounds together through the love of the beautiful game.
“Wanderers are delighted to embrace the spirit of Harmony Day in the coming week.”
Celebrations of Harmony Day will see special school clinics held at Auburn North Public School and Fairfield High. The clinics, which Hyundai A-League players will attend, encourage every individual to respect and rejoice in one another’s heritage, beliefs and customs while uniting under the Wanderers banner.
The festivities will continue onto Saturday 19 March’s blockbuster encounter against Adelaide United which will be preceded by the inaugural Harmony Day Cup. Kicking off at 1pm, the six-a-side competition aims to bring together all of Western Sydney’s nationalities in a celebration of the world game.
Inside Wanderland the Harmony Day activities will continue pre-match where some of Western Sydney’s most talented school children will display a catalogue of artworks that capture the spirit of Harmony Day and the celebration of their proud heritage.
Schools and community groups celebrating Harmony Day can get involved by using the hashtag #HarmonyDay and tagging @HarmonyDay_AU on Twitter and Instagram.
