GdS: Milan-Como now expected to be played in Italy not Australia – the reasons

AC Milan’s game against Como will almost certainly not be played in Australia as was planned, according to a report.

La Gazzetta dello Sport report that unless there’s another twist in the coming hours or days, in the form of intervention by FIFA – the only institution currently capable of breaking the deadlock – the game will not be in Perth.

Australia game off the cards

The fact is that there’s currently little chance of playing the Serie A match in Western Australia, which can’t be played at San Siro due to its occupancy for the opening ceremony of the 2026 Milan and Cortina Winter Olympics.

Milan will now have to find an alternative in Italy among the stadiums that aren’t occupied that weekend and are close to Milan. Inter did just that, choosing Monza for the Coppa Italia quarter-finals.

The Asian Football Confederation and Football Australia have agreed to play the match in Perth, but have imposed very stringent conditions, such as the prohibition of advertising the match as a Serie A match and the requirement that the referee team be from the AFC and not from the Italian FA.

These two conditions have halted the process that would have led to the first Serie A match being played outside of Italy. Will anything change in the coming days? It is difficult, but one door remains open, even if the road is now much more difficult than before.