Given the Matildas' success and popularity at the World Cup, the ACT government has to bring Women's Asian Cup games to Canberra.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
That's the opinion of Capital Football chairman Ange Konstantinou.
The government opted not to bid for World Cup games only for the tournament to be a massive success right across Australia - even the games that didn't involve Australia.
Football Australia chief executive James Johnson was "very confident" of hosting the 2026 Women's Asian Cup.
Canberra hosted multiple sold-out games during the Men's Asian Cup in 2015, with Canberra Stadium voted the best surface of the tournament.
Konstantinou felt the government should now bring the women's event to the capital.
"I think so. That'll be something we'd need to push I think, and the government would want to try and get games here if they could," he said.
"If they do bring them to Canberra I'm sure they'll be well supported and the local people will love it.
"I'm not sure where the government is up to with that or what Football Australia is doing at this point in time."
FA hierarchy continued lobbying to host the cup on Wednesday at its annual general meeting in Sydney, attended by the Asian Football Confederation's women's football committee chair Kanya Keomany.
"This process will be decided very soon by the Asian Football Confederation and we believe we're in a very strong position to host," Johnson said.
"You saw what Australia can do when we hosted the Women's World Cup and we believe we can replicate that in January 2026.
"We had an opportunity to continue to push our merit for our case and we're very confident that we will be hosting."
Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan have also bid to host the cup with a decision expected within months.
The fresh lobbying came as FA reported a net surplus of $671,000 for the financial year, a figure forecast to grow in coming years by Johnson.
"We are very happy, it's a strong financial report ... we're in a good space," he said.
MORE CANBERRA SPORT
"What we have focused on in the past 24 months is really growing specific revenue streams.
"Sponsorship has been a focus with both our Matildas and Socceroos, media [broadcast rights] has been a focus, match-day revenue ... we're expecting each of these three revenue streams to increase going forward."
The FA board elected Anter Isaac as chair, replacing Chris Nikou.
Isaac, a former Football NSW chair, said he was taking over with a mandate to continue the momentum generated by hosting this year's Women's World Cup.
Isaac said the Matildas' performance at the showcase tournament had emboldened Australian soccer.
"Shifting the mindset from one of hope to belief that we can actually do this, not only off the field but on the field; the Matildas were incredible," he said.
"Now there's almost this expectation, as we saw with the Socceroos in Qatar [at the Men's World Cup] last year, that we need to be achieving that.
"Our expectations have lifted considerably."
Isaac pledged to continue lobbying the federal government for funds to create an Australian football centre of excellence, a cause championed by Socceroos coach Graham Arnold.
"We see every other sport has something and we don't," he said.
"We love the other sports but we have an impact that we believe is greater than most of the other sports can have - not only domestically but globally, and across gender, age, every dimension of characteristic.
"We will be working really hard ... will knock on doors and meet with people until that [centre of excellence] happens."
- with AAP