AC Milan‘s Serie A clash with Como could become the first major European league fixture played outside its home country after Italy’s football federation (FIGC) gave the green light on Thursday for the match to be staged in Perth, Australia.
The venue switch stems from Olympics logistics rather than commercial ambition as Milan’s iconic San Siro Stadium will be unavailable that weekend when it hosts the opening ceremony of the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics on Feb. 6.
The proposal moves European football into uncharted territory after previous requests to stage domestic league matches abroad were knocked back by authorities.
“The Federal Council gave a positive opinion to the Lega Serie A’s request to play Milan-Como in Perth,” the FIGC said in a statement. “This brings closer what would be a historic ‘trip’ abroad for a Serie A match.”
However, the FIGC cautioned that the “complex authorisation procedure” still requires formal approval from Football Australia, UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and FIFA before the historic fixture can kick off Down Under.