The A-Leagues start dates for the 2022/23 season have been confirmed following Football Australia’s release of the domestic match calendar.
The Isuzu UTE A-League Men’s season will kick-off first on October 7, before taking a three-week break for the FIFA World Cup in November.
The expanded and extended 11-team Liberty A-League Women’s campaign is set to get underway on November 19.
Wednesday’s announcement confirmed a three-week pause to the A-League Men’s season from November 18 to December 8 while the World Cup takes place in Qatar.
Qatar 2022, where the Socceroos will come up against defending champions France, Denmark and Tunisia in Group D, will run from November 21 to December 18.
“Everyone in Australia will be behind the Socceroos and their 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign in Qatar,” said Australian Professional Leagues (APL) chief executive Danny Townsend.
“We’ll be supporting that with a three-week break for the Isuzu UTE A-League where, hopefully, a number of our stars will be on show on the world stage.
“It will be a time of great excitement for Australian football fans.”
Townsend explained: “APL is working with Football Australia to make the Isuzu UTE A-League start as early as possible with respect to the Australia Cup fixtures and the international window in September.
“There will be multiple opportunities for players to demonstrate their worth to the national team coach prior to the World Cup.
“There will be an international window from September 19th to 27th, followed by Australia Cup quarter and semi-finals and final. These are competitive fixtures that Australia-based players will be playing in and able to demonstrate their capability to the national team coach.
“We’ve got a four or five-month pre-season that will be populated with meaningful opportunities for players to demonstrate their capability.”
