CommBank has continued its mission of being “the biggest supporter of Football in Australia” announcing yesterday at a press event held at the stunning CommBank Stadium in Parramatta, that it will become the official regional partner of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026.
CommBank, already a major sponsor of the Matildas and a previous local tournament supporter of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023, has extended its love for Football in Australia with this announcement.
Talking to B&T, Jo Boundy, CMO of CommBank, explained why the bank has opted to extend its branding beyond the Matildas to the entire competition.
“Football is an incredible sport for uniting people, particularly across different nations and around the globe. The AFC Women’s Asian Cup will be exactly that, a great way to actually connect, not only Australians, who will be definitely supporting the CommBank Matildas, but also celebrating so many cultures and nations who’ll be coming to our home soil for the tournament,” she said.
Twenty years after Australia first hosted the event, the tournament returns for its 21st edition, featuring 12 national teams from across Asia. Hosted in Perth, Gold Coast and Sydney from March 1-21, 2026, the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 will also act as a qualifier for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
“Playing on home soil is always special. We feel the belief and support of Australians everywhere we go, but there’s nothing like having it in the stands with you. It’s great to have CommBank alongside us again as we bring another major tournament to Australia and keep inspiring the next generation of players,” said Australia’s all-time leading international scorer, Sam Kerr.
The partnership reflects CommBank’s long-standing support for football and celebrates the diversity and pride that unite fans and players across Australia and the region. It builds on CommBank’s expanded partnership with Football Australia announced earlier this year in a six-year commitment to grow participation, pathways and inclusion in the game.
Diversity & Reach Across Australia And The Region
With 3.4 million Australians connected to participating AFC nations, the 2026 tournament is set to be the most attended AFC Asian Cup ever. It’s a celebration of Australia’s multicultural community, highlighting the diversity and shared spirit that football brings to fans across the country. It is projected to reach more than eight million Australian viewers and attract record-breaking crowds from home and abroad, as teams from across Asia, including the CommBank Matildas, inspire fans across the wider Asian region.
“The tournament is about uniting people from many different cultures, both here in Australia and also across the region, and that’s part of the reason we wanted to get involved, to really continue the momentum and the legacy of football in this country, but also to celebrate the diversity that football itself celebrates and brings,” said Boundy.
CommBank Brings Fans & Players Together
As part of its goal to build belief from the grassroots to the world stage, CommBank is launching the Doubt Never Did Ball, an initiative that will travel to community football clubs across Australia in the lead-up to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026.
Carried across the nation, the ball will collect handwritten messages from young players and fans to the CommBank Matildas. Inscribed with Doubt Never Did, the ball will connect the players with their biggest supporters, to serve as inspiration for the CommBank Matildas when it’s returned to the team ahead of their opening match against the Philippines in Perth on March 1, 2026.
“Doubt Never Did is our new campaign, and it talks all about the truth that we heard loud and clear from Aussies that they really want to achieve their own personal progression, but sometimes doubt can hold them back. The campaign is all about tapping into that self-belief, and we believe the Doubt Never Did Ball is a really great celebration of that, and we’re excited to be taking it across the country,” expressed Boundy.
The partnership with the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 will also see CommBank provide over 500 young fans with the chance to walk the pitch hand-in-hand with Asia’s best footballers.
Held at the tournament itself the CommBank Mini Mate program will see “over 500 young kids get the chance to walk out on the pitch with some of Asia’s best female Footballers, they will be there on the games, and they will walk out before the match to celebrate and welcome the players onto the pitch before every game,” Boundy excitedly told B&T.
If this sounds like something you or your children would be interested in, Boundy left a cryptic message on how you can become a Mini Mate: “Keep your eye out for the competition.”
