Qantas Socceroos to host Serbia

Football Federation Australia (FFA) and the Victorian Government today announced that the Qantas Socceroos will face Serbia in an international friendly match at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne on Tuesday 7 June 2011 (7.30pm kick-off).

Football Federation Australia (FFA) and the Victorian Government today announced that the Qantas Socceroos will host Serbia in an international friendly match at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne on Tuesday 7 June 2011 (7.30pm kick-off).

This will be the second time that the Qantas Socceroos will face Serbia having met for the first time at the 2010 FIFA World Cup when the Qantas Socceroos won 2-1 in the group stage of the tournament.

Serbia is currently 16th in the FIFA World Rankings with the Qantas Socceroos in 20th position.

FFA CEO Ben Buckley said Melbourne was the ideal host of such a high-quality fixture between two Top 20 ranked nations.

"Melbourne football fans are arguably the most passionate in Australia and we are looking for a large crowd to bring a fantastic atmosphere to the match," said Buckley.

“The FIFA World Cup match at Nelspruit Stadium in South Africa last year will be remembered for the exceptional quality of the football and the great tussle between two committed teams and I-m sure that this re-match will be no different."

The Victorian Premier, Ted Baillieu, said that Melbourne was delighted to showcase another major event and its position as the sporting and multicultural capital of Australia.

"Like many European immigrant communities who settled in Victoria in the post war era, the Serbian community has played a big role in making football a national Australian sport," said Mr Baillieu.

“The visit by the Serbian national team will be a chance to celebrate the game-s diversity in Australia, but more importantly witness a great contest between two proud football nations.”

Victorian Minister for Sport Hugh Delahunty said that the growing on-field success of the Socceroos, the development and launch of the A-League, along with significant community participation had seen Victoria take advantage of our long term partnership with the FFA.

“This partnership will also continue to showcase the Victorian Government-s ongoing commitment to football through the continued funding of the Community Football Development Program provided to Football Federation Victoria this year.”

Qantas Socceroos Head Coach Holger Osieck is very grateful to be playing against a team of the calibre of Serbia in the lead up to the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

"We all saw how Serbia played at last year-s World Cup. They are a very decent team, have a good standing in Europe with excellent players playing in top leagues,” Osieck said.

“This is definitely an opportunity for us to see where we are at.

“Our last match against Germany was very positive and we will be looking to keep and improve on that, standard in the coming months.

"For us, every match we play in the lead up to September is very important to make sure we are fully prepared for the qualification campaign,” concluded Osieck.

Tickets for this match will go on-sale to the Football Family members from 9am (AEST) Friday 6 May until 9pm (AEST) Tuesday 10 May and to the general public from 9am (AEST) Thursday 12 May from Ticketmaster.

The match is proudly supported by the Victoria Government and the Victorian Major Events Corporation.

The match will be broadcast live and exclusive throughout Australia by FOX SPORTS.

Match Details Qantas Socceroos v Serbia Etihad Stadium, Melbourne, Victoria Tuesday, 7 June 2011 Kick-Off time - 7:30pm AEST Gates Open - 5:30pm AEST

Ticketing Details Category A - $85 all tickets Category B - $55 Adult, $30 Concession, $140 Family Category C- $35 Adult, $20 Concession, $90 Family Check www.footballaustralia.com.au/tickets for details

On Sale Dates: Football Family: 9am (AEST) Friday 6 May, 2011 until 9pm (AEST) Tuesday 10 May 2011 General Public: 9am (AEST) Thursday 12 May 2011 AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time (UTC + 10)

To purchase tickets:www.ticketmaster.com.au • Call Ticketmaster on 13 6100 • Visit a Ticketmaster agency.