Fed Square’s FIFA World Cup watch party almost didn’t happen

Thousands of fans packed Melbourne’s Federation Square to watch Australia defeat Türkiye 2-0 in its first FIFA World Cup 2026 game.

This comes after the Victorian government overruled an unpopular decision that World Cup screenings at Melbourne’s Federation Square would not go ahead following security concerns from previous events.

Addressing security concerns raised by the site’s managing body, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said that, despite there being “a risk of bad behaviour from a few d-ckheads at every public gathering”, a police and security presence would be on hand to keep fans safe.

The Socceroos will take on the USA at 5am on Saturday (AEST) in Seattle, with a win taking them to the top of their group.

Follow the latest #FIFAWC2026 update: https://www.sbs.com.au/news

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