It was a joy to play such a major role in the welcoming of both teams and the public to FIFA Women’s World Cup events this year, and to be part of such a landmark sporting event for Aotearoa and women’s sport in general.

For all nine home games, we welcomed hundreds of thousands on our whenua Ngā Ana Wai (Eden Park) through the traditional welcome from our Kaikaranga (caller) and Kaipū (pūtatara blowers). And for away games we welcomed thousands of manuhiri from around the world to The Cloud for night performances.

At the cloud there were DJs and other performances then Te Whare Karioi entertained for the last 20 minutes before each game went live. Our kapa haka group loved sharing our waiata and dance, not only with local whānau, but also so many people who had come to Tāmaki Makaurau from all over the world. Much of this was captured on social media and broadcast internationally giving others the chance to experience māori culture through a digital medium.