Australia’s friendly against Jordan switched to Qatar after player concerns

The friendly between Jordan and Australia on Tuesday, 17 November will now be played in Doha rather than Amman after Australia’s football federation raised security concerns and received approval from its Jordanian counterpart.

The match had been scheduled for Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital. The change was agreed following talks between Martin Kugler, chief executive of Football Australia, and Farah Al-Badarneh, acting secretary general of the Jordan Football Association.

The decision allows Australia to remain at its current training camp in Doha instead of travelling to Amman during this month’s international break.

Several Australia players had expressed reservations about travelling to Jordan because of the security situation in the region. The Australian Professional Footballers’ Association called for the fixture to be rescheduled or moved to another venue after a large majority of players indicated they did not want to play in Amman, according to French newspaper L’Equipe.

The concerns came alongside advice from Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which urged its citizens to reconsider the need to travel to Jordan because of what it described as an unpredictable security situation and the presence of terrorist threats.

Football Australia thanked the Jordan Football Association for accepting the change. Kugler said the discussions had been conducted in an open, respectful and co-operative manner, and praised the flexibility shown by the Jordanian side.

“We are extremely grateful to the Jordan Football Association for agreeing to move the match,” Kugler said in comments carried by the official Football Australia website.

“We understand how much the Jordan national team and their supporters were looking forward to welcoming Australia to Amman.

“Dialogue with the Jordan Football Association was open, respectful and co-operative throughout. They have been wonderful hosts for us in Amman this week, and I would like to thank them for their professionalism and flexibility. We look forward to welcoming Jordan to Australia in the future.”

Kugler also thanked the Australian embassies in Jordan and Qatar, as well as the Qatar Football Association, for helping to facilitate the arrangements required to move the fixture.

Australia manager Tony Popovic welcomed confirmation that his side would still play twice during the international break, highlighting the limited time available for the squad to work together.

“It is great to have the second match of the international break against Jordan confirmed,” said Popovic. “We were always confident of reaching a positive outcome.

“Our focus from the beginning was on playing two matches, and the players are ready to face Qatar and Jordan. These matches are very important because the time we have to work together is limited, particularly after the Asian Cup was rescheduled. This will be our last camp over a four-month period.”

Australia will face Qatar on Friday, 13 November in Doha at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium before meeting Jordan in the same city on Tuesday, 17 November. The venue and kick-off time for the Jordan match will be announced later.

The fixtures are intended to help all three nations prepare for upcoming commitments after the Asian Cup, originally scheduled for January 2027 in Saudi Arabia, was postponed until December of the same year because of the situation in the region.