Under the tournament's current format, national teams vie for the remaining 31 slots in a three-year qualification phase. The host nation's team is automatically entered as the first slot. The tournament, called theWorld Cup Finals, is contested at venues within the host nation(s) over about one month.
The nine FIFA Women's World Cup tournaments have been won by five national teams. TheUnited States have won four times. The other winners areGermany, with two titles, andJapan,Norway, andSpain with one title each.
Eight countries have hosted the Women's World Cup. China and the United States have each hosted the tournament twice, while Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, and Sweden have each hosted it once.
The2023 edition was hosted by Australia and New Zealand, making it the first edition to be held in the Southern Hemisphere, the first Women's World Cup to be hosted by two countries, as well as the first FIFA competition for either men or women to be held across two confederations. The2027 edition will be hosted by Brazil, making it the first edition to be held in South America.
Qualifying tournaments are held within the six FIFA continental zones (Africa, Asia, North and Central America and Caribbean, South America, Oceania, Europe), and are organized by their respective confederations:Confederation of African Football (CAF),Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Confederation of North, Central America, and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL),Oceania Football Confederation (OFC), and Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). For each tournament, FIFA decides beforehand the number of berths awarded to each of the continental zones, based on the relative strength of the confederations' teams. The hosts of the World Cup receive an automatic berth in the finals. Except for the UEFA, other confederations organize its qualification campaign throughout continental tournaments. Since the2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, the number of finalists increased from 16 to 24 and now 32.[1] Starting from the2031 FIFA Women's World Cup, the number of finalists will once again increase from 32 to 48.
Final tournament
The final tournament has featured between 12 and 32 (48 starting from 2031) national teams competing over about one month in the host nation(s). There are two stages: the group stage followed by the knockout stage.[2]
In the group stage, teams are drawn into groups of four teams each. Each group plays around-robin tournament, in which each team is scheduled for three matches against other teams in the same group. The last round of matches of each group is scheduled at the same time to preserve fairness among all four teams. In the 2015 24-team format, the two teams finishing first and second in each group and the four best teams among those ranked third qualified for the round of 16, also called the knockout stage. Points are used to rank the teams within a group. Since1994, Three points have been awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss (before, winners received two points). Starting from 2031, the top 8 third place teams will also advance to the knockout stage.
The ranking of each team in each group is determined as follows:[2]
Greatest number of points in group matches
Greatest goal difference in group matches
Greatest number of goals scored in group matches
If more than one team remains level after applying the above criteria, their ranking will be determined as follows:
Greatest number of points in head-to-head matches among those teams
Greatest goal difference in head-to-head matches among those teams
Greatest number of goals scored in head-to-head matches among those teams
The knockout stage is asingle-elimination tournament in which teams play each other in one-off matches, withextra time andpenalty shootouts used to decide the winners if necessary. It begins with the round of 16. This is followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals, thethird-place match (contested by the losing semi-finalists), and the final.[2] Starting from 2031, the knockout stage will include the round of 32 to account for the expansion to 48 teams.
History
The first instance of a Women's World Cup dates back to1970 in Italy, with the first tournament of that name taking place in July 1970, which Denmark won.[3] This was followed by another non-FIFA World Cup tournamentin Mexico in 1971, in whichDenmark won the title after defeatingMexico, 3–0, in the final at theAzteca Stadium.[4][5][6] In the 1980s, theMundialito was held in Italy across four editions with bothItaly andEngland winning two titles.[7]
Several countries lifted bans on women's football in the 1970s, leading to new teams being established in many countries. After official continental women's tournaments were heldin Asia in 1975[8] andEurope in 1984,Ellen Wille declared that she wanted better effort from theFIFA Congress in promoting the women's game.[9] This came in the form of the1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament in China as a test to see if a global women's World Cup was feasible. Twelve national teams took part in the competition – four fromUEFA, three fromAFC, two fromCONCACAF, one each fromCONMEBOL,CAF andOFC. After the opening match of the tournament betweenChina andCanada was attended by 45,000 people, the tournament was deemed a success, with crowds averaging 20,000.Norway, who was theEuropean champions, defeatedSweden, 1–0, in the final, whileBrazil clinched third place by beatingthe hosts in a penalty shootout.[10] The competition was deemed a success and on 30 June FIFA approved the establishment of an official World Cup, which was to take place in1991 again in China. Again, twelve teams competed, this time culminating in theUnited States defeating Norway in the final, 2–1, withMichelle Akers scoring two goals.[11]
The1995 edition in Sweden saw the experiment of a timeout concept throughout the tournament which was later tightened mid-tournament to only occur after a break in play. The timeout only appeared in the one tournament which saw it scrapped. The final of the 1995 edition saw Norway, who scored 17 goals in the group stage, defeat Germany, 2–0, to capture their only title.[12] In the 1999 edition, one of the most famous moments of the tournament was American defenderBrandi Chastain's victory celebration after scored the Cup-winningpenalty kick againstChina. She took off her jersey and waved it over her head (as men frequently do) as she celebrated. The 1999 final in theRose Bowl inPasadena, California, had an attendance of 90,185.[13]
The 1999 and2003 Women's World Cups were both held in the United States; in 2003 China was supposed to host it, but the tournament was moved because ofSARS.[14] As compensation, China retained their automatic qualification to the 2003 tournament as host nation, and was automatically chosen to host the2007 FIFA Women's World Cup.Germany hosted the2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, as decided by vote in October 2007. In March 2011, FIFA awardedCanada the right to host the2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. The 2015 competition saw the field expand from 16 to 24 teams.[15]
In the 2019 edition, which was held in France, the United States won the tournament for the fourth time.
In 2023, Australia and New Zealand hosted the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time as joint hosts, and the number of participants was expanded from 24 to 32. It was also the first tournament to be held in the Southern Hemisphere. WithAustralia andNew Zealand respectively being members of theAsian Football Confederation andOceania Football Confederation, this was the first FIFA senior competition to be hosted across two confederations. Spain won their first-ever title, defeating England 1-0 in the final. This made Spain the 2nd nation to win both the Men's and Women's World Cup, after Germany. In 2027, Brazil will host the FIFA Women's World Cup, bringing the tournament toSouth America andLatin America for the first time. In 2031, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico, and the United States will host the second joint hosted tournament, and the number of participants will be expanded from 32 to 48. In 2035, the home nations of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales) will host.[19]
Trophy
The current trophy was designed in 1998 by William Sawaya for the 1999 tournament and takes the form of a spiral band, enclosing a football at the top. It was sculpted by Sawaya & Moroni inMilan and stands 47 cm (19 in) tall, weighs 4.6 kg (10 lb) and is made of sterling silver clad in 23-karat yellow and white gold.[20] In the 2010s, it was fitted with a cone-shaped base. Underneath the base, the name of each of the tournament's previous winners is engraved.[21] The trophy had an estimated value in 2015 of approximately $30,000; by contrast, the men's World Cup trophy is fabricated in 18-karat gold and has a precious metal value of $150,000. However, a new Winner's Trophy is constructed for each women's champion to take home, while there is only one original women's trophy which is retained by FIFA with each women's champion taking home a replica trophy.[22]
Since 2007, the winners are also awarded theFIFA Champions Badge, which is worn on the jerseys of the winning team until the winners of the next tournament have been decided.[23]
The 2003 Women's World Cup was initially planned to hosted by China, with FIFA awarding the hosting rights in October 2000. Following aSARS outbreak, it was re-awarded to the United States in May 2003.[28]
^The 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup was held in the United States following aSARSoutbreak in China, where it was initially planned to be held.
In total, 44 nations haveplayed in at least one Women's World Cup. Of those, five nations have won the World Cup. With four titles, the United States is the most successful Women's World Cup team; it is one of only seven nations toplay in every World Cup. They have also had the most top-four finishes (8), medals (8), as well as final appearances (5), including the longest streak of three consecutive finals in2011,2015, and2019.
As of 2023[update], four of the six FIFA confederations have made it to a Women's World Cup final, the only exceptions beingCAF (Africa) and theOFC (Oceania).CONMEBOL is the only confederation to have made a World Cup final without winning, followingBrazil's defeat in the2007 final. The farthest advancing African team wasNigeria, who were eliminated in the quarter-finals in 1999. Oceania has sent two teams,Australia andNew Zealand, to the World Cup, but Australia did not advance from the group stage until afterthe country's football association moved to theAsian Football Confederation, and New Zealand (which remains in the OFC) has never advanced to the knockout rounds.
The United States and Norway are the only teams to have won a tournament hosted by their own confederations, with the U.S. winning in 1999 (at home) and 2015 (in Canada), and Norway in 1995 (in Sweden).
As of 2017[update], the2015 FIFA Women's World Cup Final was the most watched soccer match in American history with nearly 23 million viewers,[30] more than the2015 NBA Finals andStanley Cup.[31] It was also the most watched Spanish-language broadcast in tournament history.[30] More than 750 million viewers were reported to have watched the tournament worldwide.[32]
The 2023 Women's World Cup generated $570 million.[33] By comparison, that equates to 9% of the revenue generated by the2018 men's tournament of $6.1 billion.[34][35]
In 2023, FIFA separated broadcast rights for the Women's World Cup from the men's tournament for the first time, and presidentGianni Infantino suggested in May 2023 that the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup might not be broadcast in the "Big 5" European countries due to disappointing offers.[36][37] As of 3 June 2023[update], FIFA had yet to reach broadcast agreements in Spain, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, or the United Kingdom, with German broadcastersZDF andARD bidding 3% as much for the Women's World Cup as the2022 men's World Cup, French and Spanish broadcasters less than 5%, and Italian broadcasters less than 1%.[37]
At the end of each World Cup, awards are presented to select players and teams for accomplishments other than their final team positions in the tournament.
There are currently five post-tournament awards from the FIFA Technical Study Group:[38]
TheGolden Ball (currently commercially termed "adidas Golden Ball") for the best overall player of the tournament (first awarded in1991);
TheGolden Boot (currently commercially termed "Adidas Golden Boot", formerly known as theGolden Shoe) for the top goalscorer of the tournament (first awarded in1991);
TheGolden Glove (currently commercially termed "Adidas Golden Glove", formerly known as theBest Goalkeeper) for the best goalkeeper of the tournament (first awarded in2003);
TheFIFA Young Player Award for the best player of the tournament under 21 years of age at the start of the calendar year (first awarded in2011);
TheFIFA Fair Play Trophy for the team with the best record of fair play during the tournament (first awarded in1991).
There is currently one award voted on by fans during the tournament:
ThePlayer of the Match (currently commercially termed "VISA Player of the Match") for outstanding performance by a player during each match of the tournament (first awarded in2003).
There is currently one award voted on by fans after the conclusion of the tournament:
TheGoal of the Tournament (currently commercially termed "Hyundai Goal of the Tournament") for the fans' best goal scored during the tournament (first awarded in2007).
The following five awards are no longer given:
TheAll-Star Squad for the best squad of players of the tournament (chosen by the technical study group, awarded from1999 to2015);
TheMost Entertaining Team for the team that entertained the fans the most during the tournament (voted on by fans after the conclusion of the tournament, awarded in2003 and2007);
TheFANtasy All-Star Team for the fans' best eleven-player line-up of the tournament (voted on by fans after the conclusion of the tournament, awarded in2003);
TheDream Team for the fans' best manager and eleven-player line-up of the tournament (voted on by fans after the conclusion of the tournament, awarded in2015);
The Players Who Dared to Shine for ten key players of the tournament who "dared to shine" (chosen by the technical study group, awarded in2019).
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