European Football Royalty Barcelona And Manchester United Are Heading To Australia For Blockbuster Clashes

Some of football’s finest are heading Down Under for their pre-season tours, with some of the game’s biggest players making their way to Australia.

Spanish football royalty Barcelona has announced they’ll be heading to Sydney to face off against the best the A-League Men’s competition has to offer.

FC Barcelona is set to play the A-Leagues All-Stars at Accor Stadium on May 25 in what will be a blockbuster clash.

Australians will get the chance to catch the likes of Danie Alves, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Frenkie de Jong, with Barca legend Xavi at the helm of the squad. 

Xavi said: “We’re excited to come to Sydney for the first time and play in front of all our Australian fans on May 25th.”

While Aubameyang also chimed in on the announcement, saying: “G’Day Sydney… Can’t wait to see you.”

It’ll mark the return of the A-Leagues All-Stars who played Juventus back in 2014.

The Minister for Tourism and Sport, Stuart Ayres said: “The FC Barcelona v A-Leagues All Stars match will generate significant international interest and put Australian football back in the international spotlight.

“It’s an incredible opportunity to showcase both our domestic professional A-Leagues and our beautiful Harbour City to the world.

“Hosting this sporting star power in Sydney will highlight the city’s attractions and world-class events calendar to football fans around the globe, turbocharging the NSW visitor economy on its road to recovery.”

The game will take place just days prior to the A-League Grand Final. 

The news follows the announcement that Premier League icons Manchester United will be heading to Melbourne for their pre-season tour.

The EPL giants last toured Australia back in 2019 where they played Perth Glory, winning the game 2-0 in front of a crowd of 50,206 at Optus Stadium. 

They will head to the Melbourne Cricket Ground where they will face Melbourne Victory on July 15. 

Four days later they will face off against fellow Premier League royalty Crystal Palace, with the two games expected to attract up to 150,000 fans between them.

The tantalising prospect of seeing Cristiano Ronaldo in the twilight of his career will be enough to get Australians to travel across the country to catch the Red Devils in action. 

Looks like Australia is the place to be for European football royalty, making for an exciting few months for Australian football fans.