Five things we learned from the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup group stages

With the group stages at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup now done and dusted, we all will have a bit of a breather before the knockout rounds get underway on Saturday, August 5th. The kick off times aren’t exactly the best for many fans, especially those based in the USA, with the first game featuring Switzerland and Spain set for a rather awkward 1 AM EST starting time, while Sweden and the USWNT will face off at 5 AM EST on Sunday, August 6th (which is a pretty much an anathema wake-up time for anyone who doesn’t have to go to work on Sunday).

The unpleasant scheduling of many of these games for people not just in the USA, but also South America, and at times, Europe, coupled with a clear lack of packed stadiums has led many to wonder why FIFA even agreed to award the co-hosting rights to Australia and New Zealand in the first place. But, it is what it is, and the tournament has shaped out to be one of the best yet, with an expanded field of 32 teams competing for the first time.

Ahead of the upcoming knockout rounds, which starts on Saturday, August 6th and concludes on Tuesday, August 8th, here are five interesting stats, facts, and observations gleaned from the first few weeks of World Cup action.

It’s time to really take a look at FIFA’s ranking system

There has been much buzz about FIFA’s ranking system for decades, first starting in the men’s game, where at one point the USMNT was ranked fourth in the world, despite their overwhelming failure to shine on the biggest stage. This has now spread to the women’s game, and coming into the 2023 FIFA World Cup, some of the rankings of several teams raised a few eyebrows.

For example, Nigeria, who have played at every single Women’s World Cup since its inception in 1991, were ranked 45th. That puts the Super Eagles behind the likes of Portugal (21), Ireland (24) and even Vietnam (34), three teams all making their debuts in this competition. While some would point to UEFA being a “more difficult” association than the CAF, it still boggles the mind why a team like Nigeria received a lower ranking than teams who have never even featured at a World Cup.

Portugal were unfortunate not to qualify for the round of 16, as they were quite solid throughout and really gave the USWNT a real scare. Meanwhile, Ireland managed to hold Nigeria to a scoreless draw, but it’s clear that the Super Falcons were keen on taking a more conservative approach with one eye on the round of 16, while Vietnam lost all of their games, conceding 12 and scoring none. Of those three teams, only Portugal really looked like a potential contender for a round of 16 berth.

Nigeria, meanwhile, secured their ticket thanks to solid group stage campaign that saw them pick up five points. Three top ten sides, namely Germany (2nd), Canada (7th), and Brazil (9th) have all been sent home early, while other lower ranked teams such as South Africa (54), Jamaica (43), and Morocco (76) have all secured their places, with at least one of these potentially making a quarter-finals appearance.

Depending on how these teams do, it might really raise a strong argument for FIFA to really take a look at their rankings systems, because this year’s competition is clearly showing those numbers mean nothing on the pitch.

This World Cup’s round of 16 is set to be one of the most exciting groups yet

Thanks to an expanded field, a record-setting eight teams were able to make their debuts, and this has helped to diversify the pool heading into the knockout rounds. While UEFA, as expected, dominate with half of the 16 teams all being from that federation as Denmark, England, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland all vying for a place in the quarter-finals, the other eight sides come from four other federations: CONMEBOL, CAF, AFC, and of course, CONCACAF.

That means that the quarter-finals could also be as interesting, with the potential for teams from five different federations all being involved for the first time in tournament history.

Morocco make history…and African football is well represented like never before

Speaking of a wider range of teams, Morocco’s qualification means that the CAF have three representatives in the Women’s World Cup round of 16 for the first time ever. Both Morocco and South Africa overcame some huge odds to get to this juncture, and while they will face tough tests against France and the Netherlands respectively, they, along with Nigeria, have really helped give women’s football in Africa a huge and much needed boost.

Unfortunately, despite growing support for the women’s game, the pay situation and other logistics are still not at the levels they should be. Hopefully, with continued progress as we are seeing at this year’s World Cup, it will help to effect change to provide more support for up and coming female footballers.

Germany set unpleasant record…and disappointment for Brazil

As the second best-ranked team in women’s football, Germany came into this contest as natural favorites to win the title. Die DFB-Frauen are the second most successful team in women’s World Cup history, with their two titles only bettered by the USWNT’s five. However, prior to this competition, there were signs of trouble, with Germany being beaten 2-1 by Zambia in a friendly and winning just two of their five friendlies in 2023.

Despite this, they did show their usual ruthless nature as they crushed debutants Morocco 6-0 on matchday one to leap to the top of Group H. However, it quickly went all wrong for Germany, who were beaten 2-1 by Colombia before South Korea held them to a 1-1 stalemate to end their hopes at qualifying for the round of 16 for the ninth straight time.

Germany set several unpleasant records at the 2023 FIFA World Cup. First, their 2-1 loss to Colombia on matchday two snapped a 20 game unbeaten streak for them at World Cup group stages, dating back to 1995 when they were beaten by Sweden 3-2. Second, Germany have failed to qualify for the round of 16 for the first time in team history, having secured at least a quarter-finals berth at every single prior tournament. And third, despite boasting a whopping +5 goal differential, largely thanks to their 6-0 drubbing of Morocco on matchday one, they were still eliminated – marking the first time in tournament history this has happened.

Some wonder if Germany’s failure to qualify for the 2020 Olympics – four years after winning it – as well as their loss in the EURO 2022 final, despite being the all-time record champions could have been the signs that this World Cup wasn’t going to go their way. In any case, they are one of two teams whose early exit certainly will have fans talking for a while.

The other is Brazil, who have also appeared at every single World Cup since 1991. Unfortunately for the South American powerhouse, it means that Marta will not have a chance to make history. The veteran striker, who made history as the first player to score at five World Cups, was hoping to become the sixth, but failed to register a single goal as her team crashed out of the competition.

USWNT post worst result in the group stages…will that come back to haunt them?

Meanwhile, the USWNT, who come into this competition as the reigning champions, were able to avoid Germany’s humiliating fate and scraped into the round of 16.

But only just barely. Portugal arguably were the better side, and it’s unfortunate that the debutants weren’t able to get over the finish line to secure what would have been a well-deserved win.

With five points, the USWNT have posted their worst ever tally in a group stage since the tournament started in 1991, and there are major concerns as to whether this team will be able to get into another gear heading into their very tough round of 16 clash against Sweden. We will just have to wait and see, but hopefully the Stars and Stripes will get their act together in order to avoid what would be a rather unfortunate exit as they attempt to make more history this summer.