Yasmin Rasidi

Australia and New Zealand will be the host of the FIFA Women’s World Cup from July 20 to August 20. This is the first time for the tournament to be co-hosted by two nations from different confederations.

Thirty-two teams are participating in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand, including the U.S. as the reigning champions. For the first time, this event has 32 participating countries, allowing Southeast Asian nations such as Vietnam and the Philippines and countries like Zambia to mark their debut in this tournament.

Five cities in Australia will host the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023; Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, and Sydney. At the same time, New Zealand has four hosting cities; Wellington, Hamilton, Dunedin, and Auckland.

When will the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup kick-off?

The  FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 kicks off on July 20. The group stage runs from July 20 to August 3. Then, the round of 16 is schedule to run from August 5 to August 8. The quarterfinals will be held from August 11 and August 12. The semifinals will be on August 15 and August 16. While the third-place match and the final will occur on August 19 and August 20, respectively.

Eight nations will mark their debuts in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Australia and New Zealand; Haiti, Zambia, Morocco, Portugal, Panama, Republic of Ireland, Vietnam, and the Philippine.

To get a better overview of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, let’s take a look at the eight groups:

Group A: New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, the Philippine

The Philippines marked their debut in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 after beating Chinese-Taipeh in a dramatic penalty shoot-out at the 2022 AFC Women’s Asia Cup.

This achievement is great news for Filipino women in sports after weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz clinched the country’s first gold medal in the Summer Olympics 2020 in Tokyo.

New Zealand will also hunt for their first victory in the tournament while Norway-the 1995 winner—and Switzerland are predicted to qualify for the round of 16.

Group B: Australia, Republic of Ireland, Nigeria, Canada

Despite the host nation’s arduous struggle, Australia’s Sam Kerr will be one of the tournament’s goal machines. Canada—the gold medalist of women’s football in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo—is predicted to go through.

The Republic of Ireland will mark their debut in the tournament. While Nigeria can be one of the black horses despite failing to win the WAFCON title.

Group C-Spain, Costa Rica, Zambia, Japan

Spain’s preparation once was hampered by resignation demands from 15 players due to the alleged sexual harassment conducted by manager Jorge Vilda. Also, it is uncertain whether Alexia Putellas—the two-time Ballon d’Or winner—will participate in the event due to the injury.

Japan will be the real test for Spain. While Costa Rica can be a dark horse and Zambia will mark their debut in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.

Group D-England, China, Haiti, and Denmark

England—the reigning women’s Euro winner—will be the this tournament’s favorite. However, Denmark and China can be threats, too, and they will likely compete for the runner-up spot if England comes as the group winner.

Group E-U.S Netherlands, Vietnam, and Portugal

The reigning champions U.S., will be predicted to go through easily. U.S. vs Netherlands—the 2019 final rematch will be the most anticipated match. Portugal can be a dark horse of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, and Vietnam will mark their debut in the tournament.

Vietnam’s football—both men’s and women’s—has seen significant progress in the past few years. In the men’s category, Vietnam national team won the 2018 AFF tournament and reached the quarterfinal of the AFC Asian Cup a year later. Their junior team reached the U-23 AFC Final in 2018 but lost to Uzbekistan.

Vietnam’s women’s football team also reached the 2018 AFC final before losing to Japan.

Group F-Brazil, France, Panama, Jamaica

Brazil and France are the heavyweights of this group, and the meeting between both teams will be one of the most exciting matches.

France’s national women’s football team have lots of potential, but they never reach the top. At the same time, Brazil’s Marta will be playing her sixth World Cup if she recovers from injury.

Group G-Sweden, Italy, Argentina, South Africa

Sweden reached the semifinals in the last three Women’s World Cups, making them one of the favorites in this tournament.

While other teams have yet to show consistent performances so far. South Africa- the Women’s World Cup winners—lost in the last four friendlies (against Australia, Brazil, and Netherlands).

Italy has yet to win a single game in the recent Euro tournament. In contrast, Argentina has yet to show progress since 2019.

However, the Italy vs. Argentina meeting will be fascinating, given none of them played each other in the women’s tournament. Both will be eager to uphold the tradition of football success, like in the men’s category.

Group H-Germany, Morocco, Colombia, South Korea

Germany will easily advance to the 16 round in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, thanks to their reputation in the Women’s World Cup. They were the 2022 Euro finalist (before losing to England) and are currently ranked 3rd in the world.

Colombia and South Korea aim to improve their performance in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 after reaching the knock-out phase in the 2015 tournament. In comparison, Morocco’s women’s football team will be the first Arab nation to take part in the World Cup. Morocco made history in the men’s category by reaching the semifinals in the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.