Qantas Under 23s to call Adelaide home

South Australian Premier Mike Rann today joined with Football Federation Australia Chief Executive Officer Ben Buckley to announce that the Qantas Under 23s will play their upcoming home 2008 Olympic Games qualifying matches at Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide.

South Australian Premier Mike Rann today joined with Football Federation Australia Chief Executive Officer Ben Buckley to announce that the Qantas Under 23s will play their upcoming home 2008 Olympic Games qualifying matches at Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide.

"This is another great event win for our State and comes on the back of our successful hosting of the AFC Asian Women-s Cup in Adelaide last year," Premier Rann said today.

"The Olympic Games form a very special part of Australian sporting culture and we are honoured to assist the Australian Under 23 Men-s Football team in their efforts to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

"The decision by the Football Federation Australia to use Adelaide as the team base also reinforces the reputation of South Australia to successfully stage a range of major and world standard sporting events.

Football Federation Australia (FFA) chief executive Ben Buckley says: "We are very pleased to announce that South Australia will be hosting the forthcoming home matches for the Qantas Under 23s during their campaign to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games.

“With these Olympic Games qualification matches along with the Socceroos participating in the Asian Cup, the Qantas Matildas competing at the FIFA Women-s World Cup and Adelaide United & Sydney FC representing Australia for the first time in the AFC Champions League, 2007 is definitely shaping up to be another fantastic year for football in Australia.

"On behalf of the FFA I-d also like to thank the Premier and Events South Australia for the support and enthusiasm that the SA Government has shown in nominating to host these matches."

Since Australia joined the Asian Football Confederation 12-months ago, the qualifying path to the Olympic Games has changed substantially, and could involve up to 14 matches, 7 of which would be played in Australia with the first 4 matches confirmed for Hindmarsh Stadium.

The first of the 2008 Olympic Games preliminary qualifying matches will be played at Hindmarsh Stadium on Wednesday 7th February 2007 (Kick-Off 7:30pm ACDT) against Chinese Taipei with the return leg to played on Wednesday 14th February. Australia must win those matches to progress into the next qualifying stage.

Information regarding ticketing will be released in the coming weeks.

2008 Olympic Games Preliminary Qualification Match Schedule

Round 1 (Home) Wednesday 7 February 2007 Qantas U23 v Chinese Taipei Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide

Round 1 (Away) Wednesday 14 February 2007 Chinese Taipei v Qantas U23 Chungshan Soccer Stadium, Taipei

Should the Qantas U23s win these matches, they will progress to Group D of Round Two qualification alongside Iran, Saudi Arabia, and either Jordan or Kyrgyzstan, with the first match against Iran scheduled to be played away on Wednesday 28 February 2007.

The 24-team second round qualifying, which has been split into six groups of four, runs through February 28 to June 6, with the top two teams in each group advancing to the final round to be played in three groups of four teams each.

Round 2 - Match Day 1 - (Away) Wednesday 28 February 2007 Iran v Qantas U23 Venue to be confirmed

Round 2 - Match Day 2 - (Home) Wednesday 14 March 2007 Qantas U23 v Jordan or Kyrgyzstan Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide

Round 2 - Match Day 3 - (Home) Wednesday 28 March 2007 Qantas U23 v Saudi Arabia Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide

Round 2 - Match Day 4 - (Away) Wednesday 18 April 2007 Saudi Arabia v Qantas U23 Venue to be confirmed

Round 2 - Match Day 5 - (Home) Wednesday 16 May 2007 Qantas U23 v Iran Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide

Round 2 - Match Day 6 - (Away) Wednesday 6 June 2007 Jordan or Kyrgyzstan v Qantas U23 Venue to be confirmed

Should the Qantas U23s place in the top 2 positions of Group D, they will play in the final home and away round which will be held from 22 August - 21 November 2007, with the three group winners representing Asia at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The draw & venues for these home matches have yet to be confirmed.