The 2023 Women’s World Cup is almost here. It is the ninth iteration of the tournament and the biggest yet as, for the first time, 32 teams will compete for the trophy.
That means a new format with more matches and more players, as well as some new rules that have not been in operation before.
Here’s a primer ahead of the biggest women’s football tournament in history.
The basics
What is the Women’s World Cup?
The FIFA Women’s World Cup is an international tournament that pits the best national sides against one another every four years.
Where is it being held?
The tournament is being played in Australia and New Zealand.
It is the first Women’s World Cup to be hosted across two countries and the first World Cup (regardless of gender) to be hosted across two confederations — Australia are part of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and New Zealand are part of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC).
Eden Park in Auckland will host the opening game (Photo: Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
When is it?
The first two games of the tournament — New Zealand vs Norway and Australia vs Republic of Ireland — will be played on July 20.
The group stage will conclude with the final two games in Group H a fortnight later on August 3.
The knockout stage will begin on…
