I mean, Marvel and the MCG are not appropriate stadiums for Football/Sokkah. And i think restricting the AAMI Park capacity at 30,000 all those years ago was a massive own goal by the VIC Govt/AFL.
However, the final should 100% have been at the MCG. And probably the Canada game as well. Yes, FIFA do have rules around access to stadiums. But the opening game being moved from Allianz to Accor stadium due to demand, despite the NRL State of Origin being held there 8 days prior, tells me that FIFA are flexible when they want to be.
FIFA operate from an approved stadia model, so when assessing the World Cup bid (prior to granting the bid) they will approve a set group of stadia. Accor is a stadium that was already approved being as many (including the final) knock out games were already scheduled there, which is why FIFA were open to the venue change.
The biggest issue was that the bid didn't include either Marvel or the MCG so they couldn't move the Matildas game from AAMI once it was awarded to Melbourne.
Yes the build of AAMI was a massive own goal in not being able to expand the capacity.
It does however feel very strange that the "farewell" game from the Matildas before the world cup is being played at Marvel when their actual world cup game is being played at the much smaller AAMI.
BTW it is a bid bizarre that no-one seems to be aware this is going on. I haven't yet booked my flights and accomodation for the final, yet even looking today the costs are still cheap for a time period when an event is on. I mean Taylor Swift books some concerts in Melbourne and Sydney and the flight prices from Perth rise by $2k and hotel accommodation is exhausted yet less than a week out from the start of the world cup, and on final weekend I can still get flights into and out of Sydney for like $100.
