Matildas v France women's World Cup: Sam Kerr's injury, how to watch

The buzz has attracted plenty of bandwagon supporters of all ages, making the Matildas Australia's most marketable sporting team. Here's your guide to supporting the Matildas.

The Matildas have never made it beyond the quarter-finals in their eight previous attempts at a World Cup. If they advance to the semi-finals, they will face either England or Colombia.

They beat Ireland in the first group game, then lost to Nigeria before bouncing back to thrash Olympic champions Canada to secure top spot in the group. They then beat Denmark 2-0 in the round of 16 to set up a showdown with the world No. 5 ranked France.

This is the fourth time the Matildas have reached the quarter-final stage of a World Cup, following their efforts in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

The first women's national team played in 1974 and up until 1995 they were known as the 'Female Socceroos', until the 'Matildas' were born.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, they struggled for support, were given hand-me-down Socceroos jerseys, and famously in 1999 they did a fundraising initiative posing for a nude calendar.

Fast forward to the last two decades and the Matildas have since solidified themselves as one of the most beloved national teams among Australians.

Sam Kerr is undoubtedly the face of the Matildas and her injured calf has been one of the most-talked about body parts in Australia over the past few weeks. But soccer is not a one-person game. There are 10 others on the field at any given time and 12 others in the broader squad that contribute.

Mary Fowler, Caitlin Foord, Hayley Raso and Emily van Egmond have made the most noise up front in Kerr's absence with a calf injury, and at the back, goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold has importantly kept three clean-sheets out of four World Cup matches, helped by star defenders Steph Catley, Alanna Kennedy, Clare Hunt, and Ellie Carpenter.

Then midfielders Kyra Cooney-Cross and Katrina Gorry have helped steer the ship where the ball is contested most.

All Matildas games are on Channel 7, but the free-to-air broadcaster is only showing 15 of the 64 matches during the tournament. Because the Women's World Cup is not on Australia's anti-siphoning list, streaming service Optus Sports bought the rights to World Cup games, then sold some of the matches to Channel 7.

The semi-finals, the third-place play-off and the final will all be on Channel 7.

Football Australia's collective bargaining agreement means the Matildas earn the same minimum percentage of tournament prizemoney as the Socceroos. The pool for the 2023 Women's World Cup totals approximately $167 million, a steep increase on the $45 million shared at the 2019 tournament.

Each of the 732 players were guaranteed at least $44,000. Players on the eventual champions will pocket $402,000 each. If the Matildas get knocked out on Saturday night, each player will walk away with $137,000.

There are ongoing calls for equal pay based of the men's World Cup, which offered $671 million in prizemoney last year. It all comes down to how much money each tournament generates. At the moment the men's World Cup generates significantly more ($7.5 billion in Qatar) than the women ($760 million in the last Women's World Cup), but the gap is certainly closing.

Every single Matildas player has come through the A-League Women's - Australia's top domestic competition, which has been running since 2008.

But most ply their trade overseas because the competitions are better and there's more money on offer. For example, Sam Kerr joined English club Chelsea in 2019 on a deal reportedly worth $600,000 per season. The entire A-League Women's salary cap is $600,000 for 20-odd players.

Matildas are spread across European countries - mainly England, Germany, France and Italy - while most have also played in the premier competition in the United States.

The A-League Women's competition is now being pegged as largely a development opportunity, with clubs unable to match the big offers or the experience of being overseas. It is, however, a good chance to see up and coming talent. The season has been expanded to 22 games this year.

The Matildas have been punching above their weight in women's soccer for decades, but the future has never looked brighter. Higher salaries, improved and expanded top international competitions, and more media exposure and sponsorship interest than ever is all going to benefit women's soccer in the years to come, and for fans, supporting women's soccer in any way possible will all have a positive impact.

Nationally, this won't be the last major tournament hosted here either, as Football Australia have flagged their interest in bidding for more FIFA events in the near future, from men's World Cups to Club World Cups. At grassroots level, participation rates in Australia are anticipated to increase by 20 percent after this Women's World Cup, meaning more boys and girls will be playing, expanding the talent pool of potential superstars.

When you're out at a Matildas watch party, try these fast facts.

What's the offside rule? When an attacking player passes the ball to a teammate in the opposition half, there must be at least two opposition players (including the goalkeeper) between them and the goal. Because the goalkeeper is usually closest to the goal, the second-deepest defending opposition player is often where the offside line is set. The attacking player receiving the pass must have their entire body - arms and legs included - behind that invisible line when the pass to them is made.

Do the goalkeepers get to pick their own colours? Kit sponsors supply goalkeepers with three distinctively coloured jerseys to other players from the same team - one home, one away and one alternate jersey. On game-day the specific jersey is worn whether they are deemed the 'home' or 'away' team, but if it clashes with the opposition or officials, the alternative kit is chosen. Because the Matildas finished top of Group B, they will be the 'home' team for the remaining knockout stages. Goalkeeper kits need to be coloured differently to anyone else so that they are easily distinguishable to officials and other players, as they perform a different role, and are the only ones who can use their hands.

Why does Mary Fowler wear gloves? The Matildas attacking midfielder revealed she wears gloves because she gets "fidgety" while playing matches. Fowler revealed she trains with a ring on, or gloves if it's cold, and because she can't wear jewelry in a game, the gloves are the permitted option.

How do yellow and red card suspensions work? Earlier in the tournament, two yellow cards over up to two matches, or a red card, would result in a player being suspended for the next match. However all previous yellow cards are wiped from the quarter-final stage, and players are given a clean slate. Then the same rules apply again. From the semi-final stage though, accumulation of yellow cards from multiple matches will not see a player miss the final. The only way a player is suspended before the final is if they are given a red card in a semi-final.

How much do Matildas players earn? Sam Kerr is the highest-paid Matilda, reportedly earning more than $600,000 a season with Chelsea, and with endorsements her income is estimated to be beyond $3 million. Playing in France, Ellie Carpenter earns the next-highest pay-cheque of just over $1 million, and the remainder of the squad earn between $100,000-400,000.

Saturday: Australia v France at Brisbane, 5pm