CANBERRA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Australia's Socceroos will play Palestine in their final second round qualifying match for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Western Australia (WA).
Football Australia (FA) on Tuesday announced that the match between the Socceroos and Palestine will be played at HBF Park in Perth, the capital of WA, on June 11.
It will mark the first time Australia's national men's football team has played in the city since 2016.
Graham Arnold, head coach of the Socceroos, said in a statement that his squad would relish playing in the city.
"I often speak about the energy that our home fans bring to these sorts of games and just how much it can benefit the players," he said.
"As a group we've set high standards throughout the qualification process, and we're looking to finish the Second Round in the strongest way possible."
Australia are currently top of Group I in the second round of Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, having won both their matches so far, with the top two teams in each group to progress to the third round of the process and qualify for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
The Socceroos beat Bangladesh 7-0 at home and Palestine 1-0 in Kuwait in November. They will play Bangladesh away on June 6 and both home and away games against Lebanon in Australia in March due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Two wins against second-placed Lebanon in March would guarantee the Socceroos finish in the top two of Group I as they aim to qualify for a sixth consecutive FIFA World Cup. ■
