For the first time ever, fans will be able to watch every match of the upcoming Westfield W-League.
Football Federation Australia today announced all matches of the Westfield W-League 2018/19 Season will be broadcast or streamed live on FOX SPORTS, SBS VICELAND and the My Football Live app – Live, Fast and Data Free for Telstra mobile customers.
In a game changer for Women’s Football in Australia, the Westfield W-League 2018/19 Season will see the introduction of Thursday Night Football which means 13 stand-alone regular season matches will be played in prime-time, broadcast live on FOX SPORTS and live streamed on the My Football Live app.
This exciting initiative for football has been made possible through the collaborative efforts of FFA, FOX SPORTS, Westfield W-League Clubs and the Professional Footballers Australia (PFA). There will also be two Friday night prime-time broadcast regular season matches, one of which is a stand-alone Melbourne Derby on 16 November 2018.
Season eleven of the Westfield W-League will kick-off with a Sydney Derby on Thursday 25 October 2018 at Marconi Stadium which will be followed by three matches on Sunday 28 October 2018 with Brisbane Roar FC hosting Perth Glory at Suncorp Stadium, Canberra United taking on the reigning Champions Melbourne City FC at McKellar Park and Melbourne Victory up against Adelaide United at AAMI Park.
The Westfield W-League 2019 Finals Series will begin over the weekend of 9-10 February 2019 with the Westfield W-League 2019 Grand Final scheduled for the weekend of 16-17 February 2019.
FFA’s Head of Hyundai A-League & Westfield W-League, Greg O’Rourke, said that extensive work had gone into the development of the eleventh edition of the Westfield W-League Season draw, with the number one strategic priority being to make all games accessible to Westfield W-League fans.
“It is our desire to make the Westfield W-League the football league of choice for the best female footballers in the world and football fans,” said O’Rourke.
“To help achieve this, we set ourselves the goal of ensuring that all matches for the upcoming Westfield W-League season will be either broadcast or streamed in Australia, as well as introducing prime-time stand-alone fixtures to showcase the players and Clubs.
“Working closely with all our stakeholders, I am proud to say that we achieved this with all 57 matches available live for fans via broadcast or stream locally and selected matches into key international markets (USA and UK).
“We have scheduled 13 stand-alone matches on Thursday nights which will be played in primetime and a stand-alone Friday night Melbourne Derby.
“These initiatives would not be possible without the support of our broadcast partner FOX SPORTS and I would like to take this opportunity to thank Peter Campbell and his team for their ongoing commitment to broadcasting Women’s Football in Australia.
“It’s also fantastic to welcome back SBS for another season of the Westfield W-League on free-to-air TV, with 15 matches as well as the Finals Series.
“For the first time in the history of the Westfield W-League we have included a break for the FIFA Women’s International window in November when the Westfield Matildas are scheduled to play Chile in Penrith and Newcastle.
“Further, with the inaugural Westfield W-League collective bargaining agreement entering its second year, this season will see an increase in the salary cap to $350,000 (up 16.5%), lifting of the salary cap floor to $221,166 (up 22.8%) and the minimum retainer to $12,287 (up 22.8%).
“With the FIFA Women’s World Cup being held in France next year, all players, Australian and International, will be looking to impress in the lead up to the tournament and our expectations are that the on-field quality will continue to deliver thrilling moments for the fans.
“I am confident that this season of the Westfield W-League is set to be one of the best,” concluded O’Rourke.
Key features of the Westfield W-League 2018/19 Season
- Westfield W-League 2018/19 Season will be played over 14 Rounds (54 matches) followed by the Westfield W-League 2019 Finals Series (3 matches)
- Every match accessible via FOX SPORTS broadcast and/or live stream (57 matches, being 54 regular season and 3 Finals Series) up from 27 matches last season
- Introduction of stand-alone, prime-time football on Thursday night which will be broadcast on FOX SPORTS supported by live stream via www.foxsports.com.au and My Football Live app – Live, Fast and Data Free for Telstra mobile customers
- Regular Season will see 27 matches broadcast on FOX SPORTS (14 stand-alone and 13 double headers) and 27 matches live streamed on www.foxsports.com.au, 15 matches broadcast on SBS VICELAND and the My Football Live app delivering 30 more regular season matches to fans via viewing platforms this season
- All 3 Westfield W-League 2019 Finals Series matches will be broadcast live on FOX SPORTS and SBS VICELAND and the My Football Live app
- Each Club will host at least two home broadcast matches during the Westfield W-League 2018/19 Season
- 15 Westfield W-League/Hyundai A-League Double-Header matches
- Break for FIFA Women’s International Matches (5 – 13 November 2018)
- Two Friday night prime-time matches:
- Round 3 – Friday 16 November 2018: Melbourne City FC v Melbourne Victory @ AAMI Park
- Round 8 – Friday 21 December 2018: Perth Glory v Sydney FC @ NIB Stadium (6:30pm AEDT)
- Sydney Derbies:
- Round 1 – Thursday 25 October 2018: Western Sydney Wanderers FC v Sydney FC @ Marconi Stadium
- Round 11 – Thursday 10 January 2019: Sydney FC v Western Sydney Wanderers FC @ Leichhardt Oval
- Melbourne Derbies:
- Round 3 – Friday 16November 2018: Melbourne City FC v Melbourne Victory @ AAMI Park
- Round 10 – Saturday 5 January 2019: Melbourne Victory v Melbourne City FC @ Epping Stadium
- Grand Final Rematch:
- Round 2 – Friday 2 November 2018: Melbourne City FC v Sydney FC @ AAMI Park
- Round 14 – Thursday 31 January 2019: Sydney FC v Melbourne City FC @ WIN Stadium
- Themed Rounds:
- rebel Female Football Round – Round 4 (22-25 November 2018)
- rebel Play Football Round – Westfield W-League 2019 Finals Series Week 1 (8-10 February 2019)
- Alternate market fixtures:
- Round 5 – Sunday 2 December 2018: Melbourne Victory v Western Sydney Wanderers FC @ Latrobe City Stadium, Morwell
- Round 12 – Thursday 17 January 2019: Canberra United v Melbourne Victory @ Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan
- Round 14 – 31 January 2019: Sydney FC v Melbourne City FC @ WIN Stadium, Wollongong
- The Westfield W-League 2019 Semi Finals will be played on the weekend of 9-10 February 2019 with the Westfield W-League 2019 Grand Final scheduled for the weekend of 16-17 February 2019.
- Salary Cap increasing to $350,000 (approx. 16.5% increase on last year)
- Salary Cap floor increasing to $221,166 (approx. 22.8% increase on last year)
- Minimum Retainer increasing to $12,287 for 23-week period (approx. 22.8% increase on last year)
- Average salary expected to rise to approximately $17,500 for 23-week period
- Current International Broadcast Partners include:
- ESPN+ (North America)
- BT Sport (UK)
For all membership, ticketing, news and match information including exclusive behind-the-scenes content on the Westfield W-League visit www.w-league.com.au.
