French President Emmanuel Macron has joined millions of Australians in jumping aboard the Matildas bandwagon after Australia’s penalty shootout victory over France in the Women’s World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday night.
Macron proved he is indeed a man of his word by publicly declaring his support of the Matildas in their upcoming semi-final match against England on social media in the early hours of Sunday morning (AEST).
“Nothing personal against our English friends, but a bet is a bet,” Macron wrote on X (formerly Twitter), following the Matildas win in Brisbane.
“Good luck Australia for the semi-finals!”
It came just hours after he accepted a bet from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in which the two leaders agreed to both support the winner of the Australia v France quarter-final moving forward.
“How about a bet @EmmanuelMacron?” Albanese asked.
“If @TheMatildas win tonight, you’ll support Australia in the semi-finals. If the @equipedefranceF win, I’ll support France. Deal?”
Macron soon replied: “The World Cup is brilliantly co-organised by you, Australia. It’s an honour to face the Matildas in the quarter-finals today, but no worries: Les Bleues will take the lead! Deal.”
The French president was right to be confident, with Les Bleues the heavy favourites on Saturday night, paying $2.15 for the win, while bookmakers offered $3.60 odds on the Matildas.
But buoyed by a raucous crowd of 50,000 at Brisbane Stadium, and the supersub injection of Sam Kerr, the Matildas managed to overcome the odds and advance to the semi-finals of the World Cup after the longest penalty shootout in World Cup history (men’s or women’s).
It’s the furthest the Matildas have ever progressed at the Women’s World Cup.
Hours after their win England dispatched of Colombia 2-1 in the final quarter-final of the tournament, setting up an enthralling match-up between the two old rivals at Sydney’s Accor Stadium on Wednesday night.
It will be one of the most watched events in Australia in years – and now the Matildas will also have the French president in their corner as they look to advance to a historic Women’s World Cup final next Sunday night.