Sport is almost part of the national psyche, and there is little doubt that the climate helps enormously. The availability of cheap land also helps, enabling indoor tennis courts and swimming pools to be constructed for a mere fraction of the cost were they to be built in the UK. And in spite of the laid back attitude of many Aussies, the competitive streak, pride in performance, and desire to succeed is present in so many.

If sport is "your thing" Melbourne is probably a place that will be on your itinerary at some time. For example, it has the Australian Open Tennis at Melbourne Park in January, the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park in March, Super Bikes at Phillip Island in April, most of the Aussie Rules Footie teams playing from Autumn through to the Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in September or October, the traditional cricket Boxing Day Test Match (also at the MCG). The national soccer team (the "Socceroos") also play frequently at the MCG. The Commonwealth Games will also be held in Melbourne in 2006. Oh, and we nearly forgot the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse - the horse race that all Australia stops for in November!

Sydney, of course, has the fantastic Stadium Australia, which was built for the Olympic Games, as well as many other superb sporting arenas. Rugby League is played predominantly in Sydney, where it is arguably more popular than most other sports, and in southern Queensland. Rugby Union has major support in Sydney, Queensland, and the ACT.

An excellent site for finding out more about sporting stadia around Australia is http://www.austadiums.com, and for tickets the main outlets are:

• Ticketmaster 7 and
• Ticketek

Note that you'll probably need an address in Australia if you are planning to order tickets for a major sporting event.

And if you want to know when tickets go on sale for the main sporting events register with us and tick the leisure box. We'll keep you informed.

Go Matilda - Your Gateway to Australia