The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is only one summer away.
After the United States women’s national team claimed the title in the 2019 World Cup in France, the tournament is now moving to a brand-new location: Oceania.
Here’s everything to know about the 2023 World Cup that is quietly approaching fast:
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Who will host the Women’s World Cup 2023?
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. It will mark the first time in FIFA history that a women’s or men’s World Cup tournament will be hosted by more than one country, and the first time Oceania nations are hosting.
Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth are the five Australian host cities, while New Zealand’s cities will include Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton and Dunedin.
In 2026, of course, the men’s tournament will be co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
Soccer
When is the Women’s World Cup 2023?
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is slated to begin on Thursday, July 20, and end a month later on Sunday, Aug. 20.
How many teams will be in the Women’s World Cup 2023?
The 2023 Women’s World Cup is expanding to 32 teams for the first time. Previously, only 24 teams qualified for the quadrennial tournament.
Who has qualified for the Women’s World Cup 2023?
So far, 29 of the 32 spots have been filled. Here’s the full list of nations that have already qualified for 2023:
- Australia, co-hosts
- New Zealand, co-hosts
- China, AFC Women’s Asian Cup champions
- South Korea, AFC Women’s Asian Cup second place
- Japan, AFC Women’s Asian Cup semifinalist
- Philippines, AFC Women’s Asian Cup semifinalist
- Vietnam, AFC Women’s Asian Cup play-off winners
- South Africa, Women’s African Cup of Nations champions
- Morocco, Women’s African Cup of Nations second place
- Zambia, Women’s African Cup of Nations third place
- Nigeria, Women’s African Cup of Nations fourth place
- United States, CONCACAF W Championship champions
- Canada, CONCACAF W Championship second place
- Jamaica, CONCACAF W Championship third place
- Costa Rica, CONCACAF W Championship fourth place
- Brazil, Copa América Femenina champions
- Colombia, Copa América Femenina second place
- Argentina, Copa América Femenina third place
- Sweden, UEFA Group A winners
- Spain, UEFA Group B winners
- Netherlands, UEFA Group C winners
- England, UEFA Group D winners
- Denmark, UEFA Group E winners
- Norway, UEFA Group F winners
- Italy, UEFA Group G winners
- Germany, UEFA Group H winners
- France, UEFA Group I winners
- Switzerland, UEFA play-offs best winners
- Republic of Ireland, UEFA play-offs second-best winners
When is the draw for the Women's World Cup 2023?
The final draw for the 2023 Women’s World Cup that will finalize the group stages is slated for Saturday, Oct. 22.
However, not all groups will be completely ready as playoff qualification matches will take place from Feb. 17-23, 2023. These are the nations competing for the three remaining spots:
- Group A: Portugal, Cameroon, Thailand
- Group B: Chile, Haiti, Senegal
- Group C: Chinese Taipei, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Panama
On Oct. 14, there was a play-off draw that pitted these 10 teams into three different groups lettered A, B and C. Four teams were seeded as the highest in those groups -- Seed A1, Seed B1 and Seeds C1 and C2. The remaining six teams are unseeded, with Group C having four teams and Groups A and B having three.
The four highest-seeded teams in the play-offs were determined by FIFA’s world ranking of the women’s teams, and the rest were drawn randomly with the exception that nations in the same confederation cannot be grouped together. The four seeded teams are Portugal (No. 23), Chile (No. 38), Chinese Taipei (No. 40) and Thailand (No. 41).
The two unseeded teams in Groups A and B will face off against the seeded A1 and B1 teams in their respective pools. The winner of each matchup will earn a spot in the World Cup. The only difference in Group C is that there are two games before the play-off final: Seed C1 vs. an unseeded team and Seed C2 vs. an unseeded team.
When are tickets available for the Women’s World Cup 2023?
FIFA opened up ticket packages to VISA cardholders for exclusive first access as of Oct. 5. General sales will run from Oct. 13-21 with more windows to follow.
For more information on how to purchase tickets for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, click here.