2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup: Full Schedule, Results From Australia and New Zealand
Get the latest Women's World Cup coverage from Sports Illustrated. Follow the action from Australia/New Zealand as they host the FIFA Women's World Cup. Get up-to-date schedule, match results, and more.
The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup is finally upon us—and there's a lot of history to be made this summer.
This World Cup is centered around themes of progress and evolution, both on and off the pitch, and promises to be filled with a healthy dose of competition and serve as a reminder of why this game is growing so rapidly around the globe. With an expanded tournament field of 32 teams, there will be no shortage of teams trying to dethrone the defending champs in the U.S. women's national team, including several powerhouses that are riding recent waves of success.
Quarterfinals
- In a stunning upset, Sweden took down Japan 2–1 early Friday morning. With Japan out, there will now be a first-time winner when this is all over.
- Spain outlasted the Netherlands 2–1 in extra time thanks to 19-year-old phenom Salma Paralluelo.
- In the spirit of the unpredictability this tournament has embodied, here is why each team could win the World Cup and why each team could lose in our latest power rankings.
Round of 16
- England survived a dramatic penalty shootout with Nigeria to advance, while also losing star Lauren James to a red card.
- Sweden eliminated the USWNT on Sunday, advancing 5–4 on PKs. The game ended with a dramatic video review of the final PK after it initially looked like Alyssa Naeher made the save. VAR confirmed that the ball just barely crossed the goal line and the U.S. was hit with a cruel ending after finally putting together its best performance of the tournament. Many things went wrong for the U.S. in this World Cup, but most of all was the struggle to finish.
- The round of 16 began with Spain's 5–1 win over Switzerland followed by Japan's 3–1 win over Norway. The Netherlands took care of South Africa Saturday night with a 2–0 win to move on to the quarterfinals.
- The U.S. squad entering the knockout stage is not meeting the expectations many of us are used. Michael Rosenberg explains why that's the case.
- As the bracket fills out for the round of 16, here's how teams stack up in our World Cup power rankings.
Group Play
United States
- Since the U.S.'s uninspiring play in group play, there has been some back-and-forth criticism between former USWNT player and Fox analyst Carli Lloyd and coach Vlatko Andonovski.
- The U.S. squeaks into the knockout stage after a rather uninspiring 0–0 draw vs. Portugal. Because the Netherlands took care of business against Vietnam with a 7–0 win, the Americans finish second in Group E and will have a tough road ahead.
- The USWNT needs at least a draw vs. Portugal to make it out of group play. While an upset would be the worst day in USWNT history, it would be one of the best for the sport.
- The U.S. battled it out vs. the Netherlands in a contentious rematch of the 2019 World Cup final. The game ended in a 1–1 draw, with Lindsey Horan scoring the lone goal for the USWNT. The tie exposed the USWNT's woes at midfield as well as its struggles to finish.
- Alex Morgan told reporters Tuesday that points in the opening game felt rushed or forced. “I think we saw a lot of glimpses of our potential, but I feel like we weren’t always clicking on the field.”
- The U.S. began its 2023 World Cup campaign with a 3–0 win over Vietnam. Sophia Smith wasted no time in introducing herself to the world, scoring a first-half brace and then setting up Lindsey Horan's goal in the second half with a stellar pass. Before the game, players got a message from Tom Brady.
- The Americans are the heavy favorites entering the tournament. Despite ushering in a new era and navigating injuries to several top players, the USWNT—led by some talented young stars—is all-in on a three-peat. The U.S's roster features a mix of nine mainstays with World Cup experience, like Alex Morgan, Julie Ertz and Megan Rapinoe, and 14 newcomers, like uncapped Savannah DeMelo.
Highlights
- Germany, a two-time World Cup winner and eight-time European champion, failed to advance to the knockouts for the first time at a major tournament after a dramatic final day in group play.
- Australia stunned Canada in the final day for Group B, knocking out the reigning Olympic gold medalists 4–0 on Monday. Nigeria also moved on to the knockouts.
- Japan came out to play against Spain on Monday, winning 4–0 to take the top spot in Group C. Spain still advances, but going scoreless was quite a shock for the typically dominant squad.
- Jamaica registered its first Women’s World Cup win, defeating Panama 1–0, eliminating Las Canaleras in the process.
- France toppled Brazil in a thrilling 2–1 victory, setting up a nail-biting finale for Group F in which Marta and co. will need to defeat Jamaica in order to guarantee a stop in the knockout stage.
- Sweden clinched a spot in the knockout round with an emphatic 5–0 victory over Italy, winning Group G.
- England fans can breathe a slight sigh of relief as it was announced that star Keira Walsh’s injury—which she picked up in the squad’s 1–0 win over Denmark—is not an ACL tear. While she will not play in the Lionesses’ final group-stage match, there is some hope of seeing Walsh in the knockout round.
- Katie McCabe scored Ireland’s first World Cup goal and she did it in style. McCabe netted an Olimpico to open up scoring vs. Canada. Canada came back to win 2–1, effectively eliminating Ireland from the tournament.
- Spain and Japan are the first teams to clinch a spot in the knockout stage.
- Zambia and Costa Rica became the first teams eliminated from the knockout stage.
- South Korea's Casey Phair, who turned 16 on June 29, debuted as the youngest player to ever compete in the Women's World Cup. The previous record was held by Nigeria’s Ifeanyi Chiejine when she competed in the 1999 World Cup at 16 years and 34 days old.
- Colombian phenom Linda Caicedo scored in her debut. She scored the second goal of Colombia's 2–0 win over South Korea. Caicedo is the first woman to play in the U-17 World Cup, U-20 World Cup and FIFA World Cup within a year.
- New Zealand kicked the tournament off with an impressive 1–0 upset over Norway in the early hours of July 20.
- As co-hosts, New Zealand kicked off the World Cup festivities with an emotional opening ceremony feature a traditional haka from a local Māori collective. There was also a moment of silence in honor of the shooting that happened in Auckland earlier in the day.
- Australia had some rough news before the start of the tournament as super star Sam Kerr announced she will miss the first two games of the tournament. Australia won its first game over Ireland, 1–0.
Women's World Cup Groups and Teams
- Group A: Norway, Switzerland, New Zealand, Philippines
- Group B: Canada, Australia, Nigeria, Ireland
- Group C: Spain, Japan, Costa Rica, Zambia
- Group D: England, Denmark, China, Haiti
- Group E: U.S., Netherlands, Portugal, Vietnam
- Group F: France, Brazil, Panama, Jamaica
- Group G: Sweden, Italy, Argentina, South Africa
- Group H: Germany, South Korea, Colombia, Morocco
TV Coverage, Schedule, Key Dates
Games will air on Fox Sports and FS1 in the U.S. You can also watch with fuboTV. Start your free trial today.
• Key dates: July 20: Start of tournament; July 21: First USWNT match; Aug. 5: Knockout stage begins; Aug. 20: Final.