Last-minute Australia flights surge in price ahead of World Cup final

Searches for flights jumped by 179 per cent after the Lionesses’ semi-final victory

Return Qantas flights will set you back a steep £2,500 (Getty Images)

Football fans who wish to travel to Australia this weekend to cheer on the Lionesses in person at the women’s World Cup final will have to fork out a hefty sum to get there.

While most England fans will be tuning in from home – an average of 4.6 million people watched the semi-final – searches and prices for flights from the UK to Australia have risen tenfold in anticipation of the women’s World Cup 2023 final in Sydney on Sunday 20 August.

According to data fromNZCasinoClub.com, Google searches for ‘flights to Australia’ surged by 179 per cent in the UK following the Lionesses’ 3-1 victory over host team the Matildas on Wednesday to qualify for Sunday’s final.

Around 8,000 England fans were expected to be in attendance at the Accor Stadium for the semi-final and Sydney’s Stadium Australia, which has a capacity of 83,500, sets the stage for the final against Spain.

The FA previously expressed “disappointment” that semi-final tickets in England’s allocated section were being bought by Australian supporters.

But watching Sarina Wiegman’s team clash against Spain’s La Roja in the Lionesses’ first World Cup final will come with a hefty price tag for eager fans as last-minute air fares skyrocket.

Qantas is offering departures from Heathrow at 8.55pm on the evening of 18 August arriving into host city Sydney at 5.10am local time – just in time for Sunday’s match. The return flights will set supporters back around £2,426 for the 23 hours and 15 minute journey down under.

Under normal circumstances, when booked in advance the price of the same round-trip flight is around £1,311.

Alternatively, British Airways has a longer, cheaper option.

A £1,865 return fare outbound from Heathrow at 6pm today (18 August) offers football fans a gruelling 27-hour travel stint with a stopover in Hong Kong.

The final kicks off at 8pm local time (11am BST) on Sunday 20 August.