Sydney to Host World Cup Qualifier in October

Sydney will host one of Australia's 2014 World Cup Asian qualifying matches in October, with Oman to face the Socceroos at a yet to be named venue, officials said Sunday.

Football Federation Australia (FFA) said that under an agreement with the New South Wales government, the Socceroos will play two more qualifying matches in the state if they progress out of the third round in which they are grouped with Saudi Arabia, Oman and Thailand.

"We have a challenging but achievable road to Brazil, and we are delighted football fans in New South Wales and in particular Sydney will get the opportunity to see the Socceroos play against Oman on October 11," FFA chief Ben Buckley said.

Officials said the home leg of any 2014 FIFA World Cup Asian play-offs will also be hosted in Sydney, if the Socceroos progress to that stage.

The FFA deal includes New South Wales hosting two matches from the London 2012 Olympic Games Asian qualifiers, the Group B matches against Uzbekistan on November 27 and Iraq on March 14.