What to know if you're jumping on the Socceroos bandwagon

As the world's biggest sporting event kicks off, Australia is preparing to compete in an expanded FIFA World Cup featuring 48 teams. The Socceroos will begin their campaign in the group stage, facing Paraguay, the United States, and Türkiye in a round-robin format.

This year's tournament introduces an additional knock-out round due to the expansion, raising expectations for the Australian team. The Socceroos have undergone a generational rebuild, integrating young talent and embarking on their first World Cup under head coach Tony Popovic. Their goal is to match or exceed the team's best-ever performance, reaching the Round of 16 in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Fans can follow all the action through extensive coverage from ABC Sport, which will offer live blogs of every World Cup game and radio commentary for all Socceroos matches, as well as key group stage and all knockout stage games. All of Australia's matches will be available live on SBS and SBS On Demand. The squad, revealed on June 1, appears offensively strong, though warm-up games suggested a more guarded strategy, aligning with Popovic's patient playing style.

One notable quote from Socceroos midfielder Jackson Irvine expressed criticism towards FIFA's decisions, stating, "As an organisation, you would have to say decisions like … awarding this peace prize makes a mockery of what they're trying to do with the human rights charter." This comment highlights concerns surrounding FIFA's human rights record, particularly after the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize was awarded to U.S. President Donald Trump, leading to accusations of "sportswashing."

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As an organisation, you would have to say decisions like … awarding this peace prize makes a mockery of what they're trying to do with the human rights charter.