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: Group F
France
- Nickname: Les Bleues
- FIFA Rank: 5th
- World Cup appearances: 5th
- Best finish: 4th (2011)
Les Bleues were handed a 1-0 loss by Australia last week in a friendly, but they will open their official campaign against Jamaica on July 23. Ranked fifth in the world, the group favorites are expected to last into the final stages of the contest. Herve Renard, who took the reins in March, has set the goal of bettering their quarterfinal finish four years ago. Eugénie Le Sommer, France’s leading all-time scorer, returns this year to add to the squad that made the European semi-finals last year. They will also be calling on a flock of younger players to step up this year such as Laurina Fazer (19), Oriane Jean-François (21), and Sandy Baltimore (23).
Jamaica
- Nickname: Reggae Girlz
- FIFA Rank: 43rd
- World Cup appearances: 2nd
- Best finish: Group stages (2019)
Jamaica’s winless trip to the 2019 World Cup was still considered a momentous occasion. They were the first Caribbean nation to play in the tournament. They return four years later attempting to get their first WWC win. Manchester City’s Khadija Shaw and Florida State’s Jody Brown will be crucial to the success of the Reggae Girlz when they play France. Escaping the clutches of this difficult group will be a major challenge for the island nation.
Brazil
- Nickname: Canarinhas/A Seleção
- FIFA Rank: 8th
- World Cup appearances: 9th
- Best finish: 2nd (2007)
Brazil will play Panama to start their ninth consecutive WWC campaign on July 24. The current 2022 Copa America champions will hope to continue their dominant defensive run, not conceding any goals in last year’s competition. Brazil striker Marta will compete in her sixth and last WWC where she’ll be joined up-front by the Copa America’s top-scorer Debinha of the Kansas City Current.
Panama
- Nickname: Las Canaleras
- FIFA Rank: 52nd
- World Cup appearances: 1st
- Best finish: N/A
As the final team to qualify for this summer’s tournament, Panama has been elevated by a group of young talents, such as Marta Cox, Riley Tanner, and Lineth Cedeno. The 22-year-old Cedeno scored the winner to secure qualification for Panama back in Feb. Since Nacho Quintana took charge in 2020, the squad’s standards have steadily improved, leading them to a first tournament on the world stage.
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