The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off on Thursday. The ninth edition of the tournament travels to Australia and New Zealand from July 20-Aug. 20 and promises to be the most widely watched one to date. The defending champions, the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) will open their campaign against Vietnam on Saturday, July 22.
There are eight groups consisting of four nations, each country will play every team in their group once. The top two teams in each group will then move on to the knockout stages of the tournament.
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2023 Women’s World Cup Preview: Group A
New Zealand
- Nickname: Ferns/All Blacks
- FIFA Rank: 26th
- World Cup appearances: 6th
- Best finish: T-Last
The co-hosts have played in five Women’s World Cups (WWC), without ever winning a game. They will hope to put an end to their losing record against Norway in the opening fixture of the tournament. The All Blacks, led by 35-year-old veteran captain Ali Riley, will hope home advantage will help them progress past the group stages. They will also be encouraged by some new stars on the team like Gabi Rennie, who won bronze at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2018.
Norway
- Nickname: The Grasshoppers
- FIFA Rank: 12th
- World Cup appearances: 9th
- Best finish: Champions (1995)
The Norwegians are one of the four teams ever to win a Women’s World Cup, with a victory over Germany in the 1995 Final. The team’s star player throughout their golden years, Hege Riise, was appointed head coach in Aug. 2022. While this team has yet to reach the heights of their 1990s predecessors, they have shown signs of improvement with solid performances against France and England recently.
Philippines
- Nickname: Filipinas
- FIFA Rank: 46th
- World Cup appearances: 1st
- Best finish: N/A
The Philippines beat Thailand, Indonesia, and Chinese Taipei to qualify for their first-ever World Cup. This debut tournament marks a spectacular rise in Filipino football since the appointment of Australian head coach, Alen Stajcic, in 2021. The ‘Filipinas’— who are currently ranked 46th in the world — will hope to make a statement in their WWC debut against Switzerland in Dunedin Stadium on Friday.
Switzerland
- Nickname: La Nati
- FIFA Rank: 20th
- World Cup appearances: 2nd
- Best finish: Round of 16 (2015)
The Swiss are looking to build on the 2015 Women’s World Cup when they reached the Round of 16. They are ranked 20th in the world entering their second WWC after a disappointing group stage exit from the Euros last year. The formidable trio of captain Lia Wälti, PSG’s Ramona Bachmann, and Barcelona’s Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic are the driving force of this Swiss side. They have also added some youth to their squad as 16-year-old Iman Beney could become the youngest Swiss player to feature in a WWC.
