Australia has experienced some incredible moments in its sporting history; moments which transcended the sport itself. Like when Cathy Freeman won gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, or when the Matildas made history with 20 rounds of penalties at the 2024 FIFA Women’s World Cup™, and when Ariarne Titmus’s coach, Dean Boxall, went viral for celebrating her gold medal win in Tokyo in 2021, to name just a couple of my personal favourites.
However, another moment stands out for its emotional power. At Lydia Williams’ final Matildas match, when fellow Indigenous sporting icon Evonne Goolagong presented her with a traditional Booka, a handwoven clock of kangaroo skin.
“I think at that moment, I didn’t really know what to say,” Lydia tells me as we speak ahead of her tenure as sports SBS commentator for the FIFA World Cup 2026™. “Not only an Aussie legend and icon, but a person to be an Indigenous woman as well. And one of my idols, I was overwhelmed and really grateful more than anything.”
The booka was designed by local WA artist, Leah Taylor and features symbols reflecting Lydia’s journey.
“She actually knew my dad,” Lydia shares. “She uses a smouldering iron to burn the artwork on the skin of the kangaroo. It’s a very personal piece as she had those ties to my family and story.”
But beyond the emotional weight of the booka, having Evonne present it was incredibly powerful. Of course, Lydia herself has become an Indigenous icon as well. Representation matters, and it’s something that Lydia herself attests to.
“I think when you see someone like you, you can say, “I want to be like that”,” she says. “My idols were Evonne and Cathy Freeman, and they weren’t in my sport. But I wanted to be like them, representing Australia.”
Something that Lydia went on to do many times. Born and raised in Western Australia before moving to Canberra, she made her debut for the Matildas as a teenager in 2005. She went on to play in five FIFA Women’s World Cups and multiple Olympic Games for Australia. Lydia earned more than 100 international caps and became one of the most capped goalkeepers in Australian football history.
“To bring that kind of exposure to female First Nations in football will hopefully not only inspire more women, but more First Nations people to kick around a ball and get involved.”
Since Lydia retired from professional football, the former Matildas goalkeeper hasn’t been slacking. She’s been an active advocate for children getting into sports (and having improved facilities), particularly for Indigenous children. She also became a mum!
So, outside of soccer, who is Lydia Williams?
“She’s someone who loves travelling and learning about new things and knowing that the more she learns and develops herself, the better she is as a person,” she tells me. “Also a mother now and wanting to be the best role model I can be for my family and making sure that I give back to the sport and people that gave so much to me.”
When we speak, it’s just the day after Mother’s Day, her first time celebrating with her (at the time) four-month-old son, Coen Ronald Anne Williams. Coen actually joins us in the interview over the phone, and I can hear him cooing against her chest as we chat.
But, just like sports, Lydia is thriving in this new chapter of motherhood.
“It’s the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, but probably the most rewarding,” she tells me. “Especially as he gets older and his personality comes out more and more.”
But at four months, baby Coen is starting to explore the world on his own a bit.
“Now we’re kind of in the thick of things, he’s starting to get ready to crawl and eat and all those great things.”
It’s too soon to tell if Coen will follow his mum into football, but she’s keeping the door open for him if it suits him, or any other sport that takes his fancy. Lydia herself was interested in the sport from a young age.
“I played every sport under the sun,” Lydia says. “I grew up in a really small country town, and that was basically my parents’ way of socialising as well. Weekends were always spent outside and outdoors, and it really wasn’t until I moved to Canberra with my family that I had to pick a sport. Football was the one that I loved the most because you got to be outside, dive around and get a little bit messy. I was drawn to that more than any other sport.”
Coen wasn’t the only new addition to Lydia’s life at the end of 2025. Just a few weeks out from his birth, Lydia married the love of her life, Grace. The two keep their private lives private, but Lydia did share some beautiful shots of their wedding, which took place in Victoria Zoo.
“Yeah, we all did it all at once,” Lydia laughs. “Everything got planned without really thinking of the other possibility of what could happen. But it all went really beautifully, from the pregnancy and birth to the wedding and now. I don’t regret you know the timing of it all and just got you know I guess all over and and sorted in the same kind of month really!”
Typical goalie to be efficient!
In one of the wedding videos Lydia shared, there’s a sweet moment between her and her new wife and a giraffe, which also had special significance to her.
“They’re probably my favourite animals,” Lydia tells me. “I used to work at a zoo in Canberra before I really started being a professional athlete and footballer. So I got my zookeeping degree before it all kicked off. So to have our wedding at the zoo, I think, was kind of poetic. And to do the ceremony on the back side of the giraffe enclosure and then to actually go and have a private moment with them as well was pretty cool.”
Her love of animals inspired her books for children, as along with sports, they were a passion of hers from an early age.
“Being an only child and obviously trying to entertain myself, I really got into National Geographic magazines and animals at a young age. It really helped me with more ideas and inspirations on Goal!!! and Saved!!!.”
And of course she has a favourite Australian animal: the platypus.
“They’re quite elusive and just very interesting as a creature, one of the only mammals that lay eggs. I got to actually get really close to one that was rescued at Taronga Zoo.”
Since her retirement and motherhood, and also her budding career as a children’s book author, Lydia has taken up a new employment: SBS commentator at The 2026 FIFA World Cup™, switching the Matildas for the Socceroos.
“I’ve obviously taken a little bit of time away. I wasn’t really around for the Asian Cup, just, you know, being in the pit of motherhood,” she laughs. “I needed to emotionally detach a little bit from retirement and football and kind of just allow myself to have that separation.”
Now that she’s settling into a new routine, she’s keen to get involved in the World Cup.
“It’s definitely a pinch me moment,” she says. “Just to be given the opportunity for this tournament, like how special, how major? I have to make sure that I really prepare myself, because I’m excited to be a part of it. And I want to make sure that as a footballer, I’m well prepared for the task.”
From the Women’s World Cup to the Asian Cup and now the World Cup (not to mention shows like Ted Lasso and Sam Pang’s new series on ABC), football is having a moment, and Lydia is here for it.
“Football has been on quite regularly over the past couple of years. And you can only hope that that spurs on more people to watch the game, support the game and play the game.”
The Socceroos are taking on Türkiye on Sunday, June 14 (1.30 pm AEST) and Lydia will be on side to cover the game for Australians. But as a former goalie, she shares her favourite moment in a game.
“The kick off,” she reveals after a moment. “That’s when you know if you’ve done all the work leading into the game, either during the week or during the past couple of days or even your warm-up.”
“The first kind of five minutes really set a tone for how the game is going to go. It’s probably the most intense moment of the match.”
So, budding and seasoned Aussie footie fans, tune in to watch the kick-off from 12 June!
The FIFA World Cup 2026™ from June 12 (AEST) until July 20, with all 104 games live and free on SBS, SBS Viceland and SBS on Demand.
