Australian Professional Leagues (APL) have today announced its inaugural ‘Unite Round’ which will take place in Sydney in January 2024.
It was also confirmed that the hosting rights for the Grand Finals will revert to the traditional format, with hosting rights awarded to
the highest placed qualifier from the Semi Finals, starting from season 2023-24.
Glory’s fixtures in ‘Unite Round’ will see the Men take on Wellington Phoenix at CommBank Stadium on Sunday 14 January (kick-off time TBC) and the Women facing Melbourne Victory at Leichardt Oval on Friday 12 January (kick-off time TBC).
Full details of the other ‘Unite Round ‘ fixtures can be found HERE.
Please see below for the full APL statement and keep an eye on the club’s media platforms for further details regarding ‘Unite Round’ tickets which are due to go on sale from Monday 6 November.
APL Statement:
The Australian Professional Leagues (APL) has announced its inaugural ‘Unite Round’ in partnership with the NSW Government and Destination NSW (DNSW).
Between Friday January 12 and Sunday January 14, Sydney will play host to all 12 Isuzu UTE A-League Men and Liberty A-League Women matches, as the A-Leagues become the first leagues to celebrate a full men’s and women’s round in a single city.
The weekend will also host a series of grassroots competitions and activities for children and teens.
The ‘Unite Round’ is being introduced for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, as the APL’s partnership with DNSW enters its second year.
As part of the updated partnership, the hosting rights for the Grand Finals will revert to the traditional format with hosting rights awarded to the highest placed qualifier from the Semi Finals, starting from season 2023-24.
During ‘Unite Round’, the double header matches will be hosted at Allianz Stadium, CommBank Stadium and Leichhardt Oval, and grassroots tournaments for junior boys and girls will take place at venues across Sydney.
A live site at Moore Park will also feature a fan park and viewing party for the AFC Asian Cup match in Qatar between Australia and India’s men’s teams on Saturday 13 January at 10:30pm AEDT.
The Hon Stephen Conroy, Chair of APL, said: “We saw record crowds in the men’s and women’s finals series last season, and we again saw the appetite for professional football in NSW during the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Having all of our teams play in one place, over one weekend, is a fantastic way to serve up the best of the A-Leagues for our fans.
“We are one of the only leagues in the world where almost every club has both men’s and women’s teams, so we are uniquely positioned to create an event like this.
“We thank Premier Minns and the NSW Government for this fundamentally important partnership and for their continuing support for the development of football in Australia.”
Danny Townsend, CEO of APL said: “The Unite Round is a brand new experience which brings together all A-Leagues clubs, fans and grassroots players together for the very first time in Sydney in an unprecedented celebration of football.
“With the women’s domestic attendance record already broken twice on the first day of this season, we are looking forward to welcoming A-Leagues fans, old and new, to experience our leagues.
“We have worked closely with our clubs and fans to ensure that there are suitable constructive mechanisms for the voices of fans to be heard.
“Many of the resulting conversations have included the hosting of the Grand Finals and the strong sentiments around that, and we thank DNSW and Premier Minns for their partnership in creating a truly inclusive experience for our game.”
#ONEGlory
