2023 Women's World Cup

As we embark on the 2023 Women's World Cup, the United States look to make history by winning a third straight title.  And they're the overwhelming favorites to do so.  Winning is by no means a guarantee, though.  This is the largest Women's World Cup ever, with 32 teams instead of 24.  And, while a bunch of those will still be overmatched, the top teams are all more competitive with each other.  So, the later rounds should be very exciting.

During the 2019 Women's World Cup, it became clear that 24 teams wasn't enough.  So, expanding the tournament to 32 seemed inevitable and made sense.  However, 32 almost feels like it's too many.  I could be wrong.  The extra eight teams might prove they belong.  I have a feeling there'll be a lot of group stage blowouts, though.

This is also the first time a Women's World Cup is being played in two countries--Australia and New Zealand.  Australia is among the favorites (although, the Matildas are somehow in the same group as Olympic champion Canada).  New Zealand is not.  So, it perhaps shouldn't be a surprise that ticket sales went much better in Australia.  In New Zealand, meanwhile, they had to give free tickets away in hopes of filling the stadiums.

Despite the fact that there are eight groups instead of six, there are still groups that include two of the better teams.  In addition to Australia and Canada being together, there'll be a rematch of the 2019 final between the United States and the Netherlands during group play.  There's no safety net for finishing outside the top two since third-place teams no longer advance to the round of 16.  Ultimately, though, that shouldn't matter.  Since the top two teams in each group should be pretty clear.

Group A: New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Switzerland
New Zealand and Norway meet in the tournament opener, and it could very well decide who wins the group.  Norway is clearly the strongest of the four teams, and New Zealand should benefit from playing at home.  Overall, it's one of the weaker groups.  Switzerland and New Zealand are close to each other in the rankings, so the Swiss definitely could sneak in there as the second team, but I think the home field advantage will be what puts New Zealand thru.

Group B: Australia, Ireland, Nigeria, Canada
Sorry, Ireland and Nigeria.  There's no chance you're getting out of this group.  Canada should've been seeded and only wasn't because they were ranked seventh in the world at the time of the draw.  An Australia-Canada draw is very possible, if not likely.  So, it's gonna come down to goal differential and how bad they each beat Ireland and Nigeria.

Group C: Spain, Costa Rica, Zambia, Japan
If Group A isn't the weakest of the eight, then Group C might be.  Zambia is the lowest-ranked team in the tournament.  Although, they did qualify for the Olympics in 2021, so they won't be overwhelmed by the experience.  Costa Rica is also one of the lower-ranked teams.  Which leaves us with Spain and Japan.  Japan is the last team to beat the United States at a Women's World Cup--12 years ago in Frankfurt.  They then lost the final in 2015.  Spain, meanwhile, has been on the rise since then.  They'll both easily advance.

Group D: England, Haiti, Denmark, China
England won last year's Women's Euro and is among the tournament favorites.  With good reason.  They're very capable of winning the whole thing.  As for who'll join them in the knockout stage, we might find that out in the very first game when Denmark meets China.  This one's a toss-up, but I'm gonna go with China in that contest, which means I'm going with China to advance.

Group E: United States, Vietnam, Netherlands, Portugal
They changed the rules this year.  The United States and Sweden are no longer required to be in the same group (it would've been impossible regardless since they're ranked 1 & 2 in the world).  Instead, they're in the same group as their orange-wearing 2019 final opponent.  They'll also again get the opportunity to run up the score against a weaker team in their first game.  This time it's Vietnam.  Hopefully, they'll actually display some sportsmanship and act like they've been there before while beating up on a team they're clearly better than.

Group F: France, Jamaica, Brazil, Panama
For some reason, they have two CONCACAF teams in the same group.  A flaw in the system of making the draw before qualifying is finished that will hopefully be rectified for the next edition of the tournament.  Not that it matters.  Because Jamaica and Panama have absolutely no chance against France or Brazil.  France was the second-best team in 2019, but had to play the U.S. in the quarterfinals.  And they're hosting the Olympics next year, so this will be a nice warmup for next summer.

Group G: Sweden, South Africa, Italy, Argentina
How badly does Sweden want to finally come out on top?  For all their success, their only major trophy was at the inaugural Women's Euro in 1984.  Last year, they lost to England in the semifinals of the Euro, and two years ago, they settled for Olympic silver after falling to Canada on penalty kicks.  And in 2019, they settled for World Cup bronze after losing to the Netherlands in the semis.  So, yeah, they're motivated.  Kinda like a certain Argentinian guy eight months ago in Qatar.  As for who else will advance out of Group G, I've gotta like Italy.

Group H: Germany, Morocco, Colombia, South Korea
Being in a weaker group is actually a huge opportunity for Colombia and South Korea.  They both have a chance to join Germany in the knockout stage.  South Korea is ranked higher and plays in the stronger region.  I just have a feeling about Colombia, though.  So, I'm giving them the nod.  Morocco won't have anywhere near the same type of run as their men's team, but they've made history of their own by becoming the first Arab nation to qualify for a Women's World Cup.

Round of 16: Norway vs. Japan, United States vs. Italy, Spain vs. New Zealand, Sweden vs. Netherlands, Canada vs. China, France vs. Colombia, England vs. Australia, Germany vs. Brazil
Here's where it gets really fun!  I mean, look at those potential matchups!  Sweden-Netherlands was a semifinal at the last Women's World Cup, and Germany-Brazil has been a final in the past (it was 16 years ago, but still).  As for who'll advance to the quarterfinals in 2023, I've got...

Quarterfinals: Japan vs. United States, Spain vs. Sweden, Canada vs. France, England vs. Germany
These quarterfinals are no joke, either!  The United States is the two-time defending champions.  Sweden is the Olympic silver medalist.  Canada is the Olympic champion.  And England-Germany was the Women's Euro 2022 final.  And, frankly, six of these eight teams are legitimate championship contenders.

Semifinals: United States vs. Sweden, Canada vs. England
It'll take all the way until the semifinals, but there's the annual USA-Sweden Women's World Cup matchup.  When they played in the opening game of the Tokyo Olympics, Sweden sent a message with a 3-0 victory.  That might be all the U.S. needs for motivation.  As for the Canada-England matchup, I've gotta go with England.  They had their breakthrough last year, and they're gonna be a force moving forward.

Final: United States vs. England
In the bronze medal game, it'll be a rematch of the Olympic final between Sweden and Canada.  Sweden continues its streak of finishing on the podium at a major tournament, but once again doesn't end up on the top step.  The team that will is England.  That's right.  Even though the United States is the consensus favorite to win a third straight Women's World Cup, I have them losing in the final.  I just have that "team of destiny" feeling about England.