Are you ready for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup? It’s the first time the tournament has come to the Southern Hemisphere, and it promises a treat for soccer fans around the globe. Australia and New Zealand play co-hosts to the tournament, with the United States being the defending champions.
The United States women’s national team is the winner of four of the eight FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments and the winner of the 2019 event, where they beat Holland 2-0 in the final. The US is also the favorite to win the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup as the reigning champions of CONCACAF.
If the Americans pull off another win in 2023, it places them as the first male or female team to win three consecutive World Cup tournaments. If they want a chance to make this happen and put themselves in the history books, the Americans need to fend off stiff competition.
It’s also the first time we have seen the expanded version of the Women’s Tournament, from 24 to 32 teams. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off competition with the host nations of Australia and New Zealand taking to the field on July 20, with the final set for August 20.
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Top Matches at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup promises some action-packed games. With the new expanded format seeing more teams competing than ever before, there’s plenty of action throughout the month of competition.
Here are our top choices for the games to watch in the tournament’s opening round. We expect the US to have some fireworks as they face a repeat of the 2019 Women’s World Cup final with the Netherlands, and there are several other games worth watching in the first round of competition.
New Zealand vs. Norway, Jul. 19
The Women’s World Cup opening game is always a special event worth watching. In this game, the co-hosts, New Zealand, face off against the former world, European, and Olympic champions, Norway. The game kicks off on July 20.
The Football Ferns (New Zealand) make their sixth appearance at the tournament’s main event, and it’s the first time they’re competing on home soil, giving them a home-field advantage over the Norwegians.
It’s a realistic outcome for the Kiwis, with the Norwegians regressing from their former glorious form. Even with the Ballon d’Or winner Ada Hegerberg back in the team, Norway lost to England in an embarrassing 8-0 defeat at Euro 2022.
United States vs. Netherlands, Jul. 26
The defending champs take to the pitch on July 26 in a rematch of the final from the 2019 tournament. They meet the Netherlands, and the Americans hope they can improve on the previous 2-0 defeat of the Dutch side in 2019.
The previous encounter between the teams saw USWNT win 2-0 from goals scored by Megan Rapinoe (captain) and Rose Lavelle. The last four years have seen significant changes in the two sides, so it should be a nail-biting event with plenty of action for soccer fans.
The revamped American roster features Rapinoe, the former captain and Golden Ball winner at France 2019, removed from the squad. In the meantime, the Dutch team has taken a back seat to their English and Spanish counterparts. They dropped from third to eighth position in the official FIFA rankings.
China vs. England, Jul. 31
The Lionesses have plenty of expectations behind them after winning the European 2022 title last summer. Their victory at Euro 2022 was the second tournament title for England, in both the men’s or women’s categories and the first in over half a century.
Sarina Wiegman sees her side open their 2023 World Cup- campaign against a TBA opponent (with the competition coming from Haiti, Chile, or Senegal). They also face the Danes in their second match. However, the nail-biter in the group stage is against the Chinese in the Group D finale.
France vs. Brazil, Jul. 28
The standout of the tournament’s opening round comes from Brazil and France. Fifth-ranked Les Bleus experienced a quarterfinal loss to the US in Paris in 2019. This defeat prevented them from qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics last year.
Brazil likes its chances for taking the tournament in 2023 after winning its first Copa América Femenina title in 2022.
Japan vs. Spain, Jul. 30
Japan and Spain offer soccer fans a spectacular display of skill in this Group B matchup. Spain upset the top-ranked United States in 2022 with a host of talent, including Ballon d’Or 2021 and ’22 winner Alexia Putellas.
FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Match Schedule
The opening ceremony and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup match – take place at the first co-hosted edition of the tournament. The event will occur at New Zealand’s Eden Park in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau on 20 July 2023.- The final – This takes place a month later at the Stadium Australia in Sydney on 20 August. During the 2023 Women’s World Cup, we see matches taking place in ten stadiums across nine cities in Australia and New Zealand.
- The Group A opening match at Eden Park – It sees the Football Ferns take to the pitch, with the Australian Matildas entering the tournament in their Group B matchup at the Sydney Football Stadium. The host countries split the remaining fixtures in the group stage, with New Zealand hosting five matches in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, six in Dunedin/Ōtepoti, seven in Wellington/Te Whanganui-a-Tara, and five in Hamilton/Kirikiriroa.
- Group stage matches – Australia hosts six group-stage matches at the Sydney Football Stadium. Perth and Brisbane host five each, and four are in Adelaide and Melbourne. The round-of-16 takes place from 5-8 August, and Stadium Australia plays host to its first game of the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
- Quarter-final stage – It occurs in Brisbane/Meeanjin, Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, and Stadium Australia in Sydney/Gadigal. Both New Zealand and Australia host one semi-final each at Eden Park and Stadium Australia, respectively. The third-place match takes place at Brisbane Stadium in Australia.
Where Can I Stream the FIFA World Cup 2023?
You will be able to stream the games live through the following platforms. If you are in a country where the content is geo-locked, you may consider using a VPN.
- fuboTV
- Fox Sports
- App
- FIFA.com
Women’s World Cup Match Venues
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup features matches played at the following stadiums in Host cities across New Zealand and Australia.
- Brisbane Stadium – Brisbane / Meaanjin, Australia
- Dunedin Stadium – Dunedin / Ōtepoti, New Zealand
- Eden Park – Auckland / Tāmaki Makaurau, New Zealand
- Hindmarsh Stadium – Adelaide / Tarntanya, Australia
- Melbourne Rectangular Stadium – Melbourne / Naarm, Australia
- Perth Rectangular Stadium – Perth / Boorloo, Australia
- Stadium Australia – Adelaide / Tarntanya, Australia
- Sydney Football Stadium – Sydney / Gadigal, Australia
- Waikato Stadium – Hamilton / Kirikiriroa, New Zealand
- Wellington Regional Stadium – Wellington / Te Whanganui-a-Tara, New Zealand
2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Draw
Pot 1
- New Zealand (22) (co-hosts)
- Australia (13) (co-hosts)
- United States (1)
- Sweden (2)
- Germany (3)
- England (4)
- France (5)
- Spain (6)
Pot 2
- Canada (7)
- Netherlands (8)
- Brazil (9)
- Japan (11)
- Norway (12)
- Italy (14)
- China (15)
- South Korea (17)
Pot 3
- Denmark (18)
- Switzerland (21)
- Republic of Ireland (24)
- Colombia (27)
- Argentina (29)
- Vietnam (34)
- Costa Rica (37)
- Jamaica (43)
Pot 4
- Nigeria (45)
- Philippines (53)
- South Africa (54)
- Morocco (76)
- Zambia (81)
- Play-off Group A winners[a]
- Play-off Group B winners[b]
- Play-off Group C winners[c]
2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Groups
Group A
- New Zealand (H)
- Norway
- Philippines
- Switzerland
Group B
- Australia (H)
- Republic of Ireland
- Nigeria
- Canada
Group C
- Spain
- Costa Rica
- Zambia
- Japan
Group D
- England
- Play-off Group B winners
- Denmark
- China
Group E
- United States
- Vietnam
- Netherlands
- Play-off Group A winners
Group F
- France
- Jamaica
- Brazil
- Play-off Group C winners
Group G
- Sweden
- South Africa
- Italy
- Argentina
Group H
- Germany
- Morocco
- Colombia
- South Korea
2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Broadcasting Rights
The 2023 edition of the Women’s World Cup is the first event in its history to undergo commercialization as a standalone broadcasting product. This is a change from the traditional role of the event being packaged as a secondary product alongside the men’s version of the World Cup Finals.
The event organizers expect a massive surge in viewership of the women’s event in 2023. They also state they have huge interest from other broadcasting partners to bring the Women’s World Cup to a global audience. The organizers say they want the 2023 edition to reach 2 billion viewers, nearly doubling the 2019 audience of 1.12 billion for the 2019 event in France.
FIFA rejected several bids from public and private broadcasters in October 2022. They said the rejections were due to underpriced proposals, urging their broadcasting partners to offer what the women’s game deserves.
Romy Gai, Chief Business Officer for FIFA, stated broadcasters should seize the “opportunity” to be a part of the women’s game, saying bids didn’t reflect the growing popularity of women’s football. He cited the increase in viewership across the globe as his reason for increasing the minimum bids for broadcasting rights. As of the end of 2022, there has yet to be a confirmation from broadcasting partners to this request.
If you want to watch the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup without signing up for a cable service partner, you can stream it from the UK or the US if you’re outside these regions. Downloading and installing a VPN, like ExpressVPN, allows you to circumvent regional blocks to access these broadcasting partners.
