All you need to know about the Women’s World Cup 2023
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The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 is set to get under way on July 20, with Australia and New Zealand jointly hosting the 32-team tournament.
England travel to the other side of the world as reigning European champions and one of the favourites in the Women’s World Cup 2023 winner odds, despite missing several key players including captain Leah Williamson and Euro 2022 Golden Boot winner Beth Mead through injury.
We have put together a comprehensive tournament guide as Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses seek an unprecedented World Cup triumph.
What does the Women’s World Cup 2023 draw look like?
The Women’s World Cup 2023 is the first to be contested by 32 teams, with nations split into eight groups of four.
England have been drawn in Group D alongside Denmark, China and Haiti, with their opponents ranked 13th, 14th and 53rd respectively by FIFA.
While Wiegman’s side will be expected to cruise into the last 16, their group is the second strongest in the draw according to FIFA ranking points. The most difficult group on paper is Group E, which contains two-time defending champions USA, 2019 finalists the Netherlands, Portugal and Vietnam.
Group C has the lowest average ranking, with potential dark horses Spain and Japan expected to comfortably dispose of Costa Rica and Zambia. Meanwhile, Group A looks equally innocuous with none of Norway, Switzerland, New Zealand or Philippines being ranked in the top 10.
Should England qualify, they will play one of the top two in Group B in the last 16, with Olympic champions Canada or joint-hosts Australia looming as potential opponents.
Which team has the best record?
Four-time winners USA have reached at least the semi-finals in all eight previous editions of the Women’s World Cup. Germany are the only team that comes close to matching this record, having made the semi-finals on five separate occasions and twice gone on to lift the title.
Norway and Japan also got their hands on the trophy in 1995 and 2011 respectively, while Sweden, China, Brazil and the Netherlands have all been beaten finalists since the tournament’s inception in 1991.
England’s World Cup record is relatively underwhelming, with two semi-finals and three quarter-finals from their five previous appearances.
The Lionesses have improved over time, however, having lost narrowly in the last four in 2015 and 2019. They conceded a late own goal against Japan eight years ago before succumbing to the USA in a hard-fought encounter four years later.
Who has the beating of their rivals?
There have been 216 Women’s World Cup matches played between the nations at this year’s tournament, with eight of the 32 teams having qualified for the first time.
The USA have faced their potential opposition 43 times at previous World Cups, winning 34, drawing five and losing only four of those matches.
The Americans lost in semi-finals against Norway, Germany and Brazil in 1995, 2003 and 2007 respectively, before suffering a surprise group-stage defeat to Sweden in 2011. They also lost on penalties in the 2011 final against Japan, after the match had ended in a 2-2 draw after extra-time.
Germany have the next best record, with 24 wins from 38 matches against teams they might face in Australia and New Zealand. The Dutch are third for win rate, ahead of Brazil and then England.
The Lionesses have recorded 12 victories in 22 World Cup meetings with teams in the 2023 tournament, as well as three draws and seven defeats.
What are England’s chances?
England head to Australia and New Zealand with justified optimism having won Euro 2022 on home soil, but also a degree of trepidation following a raft of injuries and a run of indifferent form.
The Lionesses enjoyed an electric start to life under Wiegman after her appointment as manager in September 2021. They won 18 out of 20 matches and scored an eye-watering 106 goals in the process, culminating in a 2-1 victory over Germany at Wembley that saw them crowned European champions.
However, they have struggled somewhat since that famous triumph, with seven wins, four draws and a loss – their first under Wiegman – in 12 games. Their goalscoring rate has halved from 5.30 to 2.67 per game, with England having failed to score in each of their last two matches against Australia and Portugal.
Their downturn in form can be partly attributed to key absentees from Euro 2022. The experienced duo of Jill Scott and Ellen White retired in the immediate aftermath of the tournament, while star players Mead, Williamson and Fran Kirby all suffered season-ending injuries in the build-up to the World Cup.
As a result, England Women’s World Cup 2023 squad is far less experienced than the Euro 2022 group, with a total of 733 caps at an average of 32 per player compared with 973 – 42 per player – among their predecessors.
Six players have fewer than 10 caps, compared with only four of last year’s contingent, while another half-dozen have amassed at least 50 caps – versus nine of the Euros squad.
Four of the five most-capped players who featured at Euro 2022 – Scott, White, Demi Stokes and Nikita Parris – have retired or been overlooked this time, with Lucy Bronze now leading the way ahead of Alex Greenwood.
The Lionesses are especially light in attack, with those going to the World Cup having scored a combined 114 goals at international level compared with their predecessors’ 202.
Manchester United’s Ella Toone and Arsenal’s new recruit Alessia Russo – who starred as substitutes in Euro 2022 – are likely to feature from the start in Australia and New Zealand, while Aston Villa’s Rachel Daly – who top scored in the Women’s Super League having switched from her previous full-back position – provides another option up front.
However, there remains a shortfall elsewhere in the squad, with seven outfield players having never scored for England compared with just two of the side that won the Euros.
