2023 Women's World Cup - Australia & New Zealand

Creating a thread to track major news for this competition.

Here are the qualified nations and groups:

The #FIFAWWC 2023 Groups are set!

Which one is the most exciting? #BeyondGreatness

— FIFA Women's World Cup (@FIFAWWC) February 23, 2023

8 nations will be making their first appearance at the World Cup:

Haiti
Morocco
Panama
The Philippines
Portugal
Republic of Ireland
Vietnam
Zambia

I'm particularly excited to see Haiti and Portugal. Haiti has a rising generational talent on their hands with Melchie Dumornay, who is signing with Lyon.

Portugal turned some heads at the Euros and are lead by star forward Jessica Silva of Benfica. Sporting's Diana Silva is also another one to keep an eye on.

The French are among the favorites, but are going to have to head Down Under without their star defender and captain, Wendie Renard:

"I can no longer endorse the current system, far from the requirements required by the highest level. I will not do this World Cup in such conditions. My face can hide the pain, but my heart hurts. I don't want to hurt anymore" Wendie Renard says she will not play at the @FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/vuTi2fhyJx

— Asif Burhan (@AsifBurhan) February 24, 2023

As with the men's side, controversy has surrounded the women's side as well. This is the Daily Mail, but I think they've captured the problems accurately:

On paper, France are one of the strongest teams in the competition. Their squad has experience in the likes of Wendie Renard as well as young, exciting attacking players such as Marie Antoinette-Katoto and Sandy Baltimore. But it is the worst kept secret in the women’s game that manager Corinne Diacre has had an acrimonious relationship with several of her star players.

Diacre made headlines in 2014 when she became the first woman to coach a men’s professional side in France after taking over Ligue 2 side Clermont Foot. In 2017, she left to join the women’s national team following that summer’s Euros. Immediately, she stripped the then four-time Champions League winner Renard of the captaincy, claiming the defender did not play as well for France as she did for her club team, Lyon. Renard remained in the squad but the armband was instead given to Amandine Henry.

Ahead of the 2019 World Cup, which France hosted, Diacre left Katoto out of her squad despite the forward being the top scorer in France with 22 goals that year. Diacre’s goal was to reach the final of the tournament but her side were knocked out in the quarter-finals by the United States, the eventual winners.

The fall-out from their exit started with Diacre criticising striker Eugenie Le Sommer, France’s all-time leading goalscorer, during a television interview. Diacre complained that Le Sommer had not followed her tactics in the game and had strayed out of position. At this point, several players started to speak out against their manager.

Gaetane Thiney accused her of having outdated tactics. She was promptly dropped. Long-serving goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi decided to ‘indefinitely retire’ from the national team. In an interview with Lyon TV, she said: ‘Winning a title with this coach seems impossible to me. We play in a very, very negative environment. I don't see myself winning anything with this manager, and a lot of players think so too but don't say it.’

Bouhaddi has since insisted she will not play for France while Diacre remains manager. Further controversy arose when Henry was left out of the squad for Euro qualifiers in October 2020, with Diacre claiming she was not at the required level after recovering from an injury.

A month later, Henry spoke out about what had unfolded in the French camp at the 2019 World Cup. ‘I saw players crying in their rooms,’ Henry said. ‘I personally cried in my room sometimes. I wanted to enjoy the World Cup, but in the end, it was total chaos.’ In September 2021, Diacre handed the captain’s armband back to Renard.

This was reported on before the Euros, where they were eliminated by Germany 2-1 in the semis.

The FFF have backed Diacre at every turn throughout all of the above. That's an extremely telling position from the players' perspective. And now they face the task of competing in the World Cup without their leader and most experienced player, coached by someone they appear to revile. This all sounds a bit familiar.

I'll probably do something on favorites and dark horses soon now that the She Believes Cup and Arnold Clark Cups have wrapped up.

It looks like France's star forward Marie-Antoinette Katoto, fresh off an ACL tear, is also choosing not to play for Diacre:

pic.twitter.com/h2avCoUftR

— Marie-Antoinette (@MarieKatoto) February 24, 2023

Star winger Kadidiatou Diani is also confirming she won't play for Diacre as well. This is a full on rebellion now:

pic.twitter.com/WDOgxqXabd

— Kadidiatou Diani (@kady944) February 24, 2023

I'm in awe of these players honestly. This is really powerful stuff.

France saved all the world cup drama for the women's team this time around

Updates per @lequipe:

The decision of firing Corinne Diacre has been postponed by the FFF due to their president resigning.

A special group has been formed to make a decision by the 9th of March. https://t.co/fji0egQuYg

— ata football (@atafball) February 28, 2023

They were almost there to making the right decision. The FFF are a joke.

Meanwhile, in Canada.....

Two women elected to top Canada Soccer Board positions

Charmaine Crooks becomes Canada Soccer’s new acting President and first woman and person of colour to lead organisation.

Kelly Brown will take on the position of acting Vice-President.

— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) March 1, 2023

This took far too long from Canada Soccer, but I don't know anything about Crooks or Brown and what role they played over the last year or so.

What I do know is Canada Soccer haven't paid their women's team, Gold Medal winners at the latest Olympics, for over a year and then threatened to sue them in order to force them to compete in the She Believes Cup when they indicated they were going to go on strike.

Excellent ranking of the Top 9 nations:

The biggest women’s soccer tournament in the world is just four months away and @838_carlisle is ranking every @FIFAWWC contender

WARNING: it’s spicy ️ https://t.co/8WlpNlvLyc

— Gaming Society (@GamingSociety) March 1, 2023

If you don't follow women's football, there will be some surprises in these rankings.

It looks like the FFF have finally come to their senses:

:JUST IN: Corinne Diacre will be dismissed this Thursday after a meeting of the executive committee of the French Football Federation. The 12 members of the highest body of French football decided in favor of a departure of the 48-year-old technician. https://t.co/EW8sca8pFB

— SHE scores bangers (@SHEscoresbanger) March 8, 2023

No word on who will replace her, but Herve Renard looks a likely candidate as does PSG Women's coach Gerard Prechour.

World Cup starts in a few weeks. Most of the team have put out provisional squads, but a few have released their official squads:

England

Heading to Australia this summer

— Lionesses (@Lionesses) May 31, 2023

Key Players: Lucy Bronze (Barcelona), Keira Walsh (Barcelona), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Lauren Hemp (Manchester City), Lauren James (Chelsea) and Alessia Russo (Manchester United)

Spain

️ ???????????????????????????????????? las ???????? ???????????????????????????????????????????? que forman parte de la lista de preparación para el @FIFAWWC.

España trabajará en Benidorm, Madrid y Asturias antes de viajar a Dinamarca.

️ El próximo día 30 de junio, la lista definitiva.

https://t.co/8Ief31RDDr… pic.twitter.com/V4sdC88GS2

— Selección Española Femenina de Fútbol (@SEFutbolFem) June 12, 2023

Key Players: Irene Paredes (Barcelona), Aitana Bonmati (Barcelona), Alexia Putellas (Barcelona), Jenni Hermoso (Pachuca)

Portugal

Rumo ao Mundial! Estas são as #Navegadoras que vão escrever mais uma página na nossa história! #VesteABandeira pic.twitter.com/EP5EFoM8WG

— Portugal (@selecaoportugal) May 30, 2023

Key Players: Dolores Silva (Braga), Tatiana Pinto (Levante), Ana Borges (Sporting CP), Diana Silva (Sporting CP), Jessica Silva (Benfica)

Sweden

????????-???????????????????????????? ???????????????? pic.twitter.com/UJcpQpDo6H

— Svensk Fotboll (@svenskfotboll) June 13, 2023

Key Players: Magda Eriksson (Bayern Munich), Kosovare Asllani (Milan),
Stina Blackstenius (Arsenal), Lina Hurtig (Arsenal), Fridolina Rolfo (Barcelona)

Nigeria

.@NGSuper_Falcons 23 for AUNZ 23’ Women's World Cup #SoarSuperFalcons pic.twitter.com/lWd1KUbcHH

— The NFF (@thenff) June 16, 2023

Key Players: Uchenna Kanu (Racing Louisville), Rasheedat Ajibade (Atletico Madrid), Ifeoma "Ify" Onumonu (Gotham FC), Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash), and Asisat Oshoala (Barcelona)

USA

For people who like lists #USWNT x @allstate pic.twitter.com/2dgYGsHG9D

— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) June 21, 2023

Key Players: Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave), Crystal Dunn (Portland Thorns), Rose Lavelle (OL Reign), Julie Ertz (Angel City), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns), and Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave)

South Africa

Breaking News

Ellis names FINAL Banyana Banyana squad for the 2023 @FIFAWWC

#LiveTheImpossible pic.twitter.com/jXEzzdmwzP

— Banyana_Banyana (@Banyana_Banyana) June 23, 2023

Key Players: Noko Matlou (Eibar), Refiloe Jane (Sassuolo), Jermaine Seoposenwe (Monterrey), and Thembi Kgatlana (Racing Louisville)

Jamaica

Here’s the Squad List of players who will be participating in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup!
.#ReggaeGirlz #FIFAWomensWorldCup #BeyondGreatness #JFF_Football pic.twitter.com/8bBWqebU4H

— Official J.F.F (@jff_football) June 25, 2023

Key Players: Allyson Swaby (Paris Saint-Germain), Havana Solaun (Houston Dash), Konya Plummer (Unattached), Trudi Carter (Unattached), Cheyna Matthews (Chicago Red Stars), and Khadija "Bunny" Shaw (Manchester City)

Brazil

Agora é pra valer!

Saiu a lista das jogadoras que vão representar a #SeleçãoFeminina na @FIFAWWC!

Vamos juntas pela primeira estrela!

: Junior Souza / CBF pic.twitter.com/tudZljD2cX

— Seleção Feminina de Futebol (@SelecaoFeminina) June 27, 2023

Key Players: Adriana (Orlando Pride), Kerolin (North Carolina Courage), Ary Borges (Racing Louisville), Debinha (Kansas City Current), and Marta (Orlando Pride).

Republic of Ireland

Here they are!

Your @FIFAWWC squad announcement is here pic.twitter.com/RGjaLvQnDH

— Ireland Football (@IrelandFootball) June 28, 2023

Key Players: Katie McCabe (Arsenal), Denise O'Sullivan (North Carolina Courage), and Niamh Fahey (Liverpool)

New Zealand

Back to where it all started…

Here is the Ford Football Ferns squad for the @FIFAWWC at home in Aotearoa New Zealand pic.twitter.com/8gU3f4e7CQ

— New Zealand Football (@NZ_Football) June 30, 2023

Key Players: Erin Naylor (IFK Norrkoping), Ali Riley (Angel City FC), Ria Percival (Tottenham Hotspur), Betsy Hassett (Stjarnan), Annalie Longo (Unattached), and Hannah Wilkinson (Melbourne City)

The Netherlands

A journey through time, all leading to ????????????!

Here's our #FIFAWWC Squad! #TheOranjeBeat #NothingLikeOranje pic.twitter.com/CTlr44sOsp

— OranjeLeeuwinnen (@oranjevrouwen) June 30, 2023

Key Players: Stefanie van der Gragt (Inter Milan), Dominique Jansson (Wolfsburg), Sherida Spitse (Ajax), Danielle van de Donk (Lyon), Jackie Groenen (Paris Saint-German), Jill Roord (Wolfsburg), Lieke Martins (Paris Saint-German), and Lineth Beerensteyn (Juventus)

Denmark

????????-????????????????????????

Her er de 23 udvalgte spillere til VM i Australien og New Zealand 🤩#ForDanmark #FIFAWWC @FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/J7fxU2kmGe

— Fodboldlandsholdene (@dbulandshold) June 30, 2023

Key Players: Katrine Veje (Everton), Sanne Troelsgaard (Reading), Signe Bruun (Lyon), and Pernille Harder (Bayern Munich)

Australia

SQUAD: ????????????????????????????????????.

Introducing our 23-player squad for the #FIFAWWC - ready to give it our all on home soil!#TilitsDone pic.twitter.com/igvxAhRgQQ

— CommBank Matildas (@TheMatildas) July 3, 2023

Key Players: Lydia Williams (Brighton), Ellie Carpenter (Lyon), Steph Catley (Arsenal), Emily van Edgmond (San Diego Wave), Caitlin Foord (Arsenal), and Sam Kerr (Chelsea)

Zambia

Here is our final squad for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. #WeAreCopperQueens pic.twitter.com/XEJm9Vj2q3

— Zambia WNT (@Copper_Queens) July 3, 2023

Key Players: Lushomo Mweemba (Green Buffaloes), Ireen Lungu (BIIK Shymkent), Grace Chanda (Madrid CFF), and Barbra Banda (Shanghai Shengli)

Canada

Your World Cup Squad @CANWNT x @CIBC #WeCAN pic.twitter.com/O9WIIldFId

— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) July 9, 2023

Key Players: Kadeisha Buchanan (Chelsea), Ashley Lawrence (Chelsea), Vanessa Gilles (Lyon), Sophie Schmidt (Houston Dash), Jessie Fleming (Chelsea), Nichelle Prince (Houston Dash), Deanne Rose (Reading), Adriana Leon (Manchester United) and Christine Sinclair (Portland Thorns)

Germany

Unser TEAM für die anstehende Weltmeisterschaft in Australien und Neuseeland

Alle weiteren Infos:
https://t.co/SBSo24wgQu

WIR #IMTEAM #FIFAWWC pic.twitter.com/EXxjZN7Pew

— DFB-Frauen (@DFB_Frauen) July 8, 2023

Key Players: Merle Frohms (Wolfsburg), Marina Hegering (Bayern Munich), Sara Dabritz (Lyon), Lina Magull (Bayern Munich), Lena Oberdorf (Wolfsburg), Lea Schuller (Bayern Munich) and Alexandra Popp (Wolfsburg)

France

🫡 Elles représenteront la ???????????????????????? à l'autre bout de la planète
Coupe du Monde (20 juillet - 20 aout) #FiersdetreBleues pic.twitter.com/ntSmWwgO61

— Equipe de France Féminine (@equipedefranceF) June 6, 2023

Key Players: Wendie Renard (Lyon), Selma Bacha (Lyon), Grace Geyoro (Paris Saint-Germain), Amel Majiri (Lyon), Kadidiatou Diani (Unattached), and Eugenie Le Sommer (Lyon)

Japan

???????????????? ????????????????????'???? ???????????????????? ???????????? ????????????????#なでしこジャパン 招集メンバー

ユニフォーム背番号＆ネーム一覧

背番号＆ネーム入り『アディダス サッカー日本女子代表 2023 ユニフォーム』は、アディダスオンラインショップで受付中

ホーム オーセンティック… pic.twitter.com/UINqvKbswA

— JFAなでしこサッカー (@jfa_nadeshiko) July 10, 2023

Key Players: Saki Kumagai (Roma), Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City), Hina Sugita (Portland Thorns), Jun Endo (Angel City), and Mina Tanaka (Kobe Leonessa)

Norway

Her er VM-troppen https://t.co/t4Fp9738lP pic.twitter.com/YMKlIYp1tb

— Fotballandslaget (@nff_landslag) June 19, 2023

Key Players: Maren Mjelde (Chelsea), Guro Reiten (Chelsea), Ingrid Engen (Barcelona), Caroline Graham Hansen (Barcelona), Emilie Haavi (Roma), and Ada Hegerberg (Lyon)

So far only 10 of the 32 teams total have named their official squads and we're about a month out from the start of the tournament.

The remaining 22 have all named provisional squads with about 6 cuts each will have to make.

The reveal videos have been rather good so far. USA's was star studded, as expected, with the likes of Lil Wayne, Taylor Swift, Megan Thee Stallion, Blake Lively, Jalen Hurtz, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, and John Cena helping announce the squad.

I have some real thoughts on the squad USA are taking and they are not good ones, but I'll save that take for an overall overview once all the squads are announced.

Just realized, I didn't post the groups:

Group A

New Zealand
Norway
Philippines
Switzerland

Group B

Australia
Republic of Ireland
Nigeria
Canada

Group C

Spain
Costa Rica
Zambia
Japan

Group D

England
Haiti
Denmark
China

Group E

USA
Vietnam
Netherlands
Portugal


Group F

France
Jamaica
Brazil
Panama

Group G

Sweden
South Africa
Italy
Argentina

Group H

Germany
Morocco
Colombia
South Korea


There isn't a clear group of death here, but I will say that Groups B and D are gonna probably have some interesting results. Group B in particular doesn't have a glaringly weak team in it so that would be my pick if I absolutely had to. Group E could be a vibe as well.

It's gonna be rough getting up at 1 am and 3 am for some of these matches, given it's in Australia and New Zealand. DVR might get dusted off.

Just posted the Jamaica official squad and wanted to note that currently the JFF appear to have bungled the money they were given by FIFA to pay for getting this team to the World Cup, leaving the team to have to setup a Go Fund Me in order to accrue the money needed to get there. At last check, it had reach roughly 40% of its goal. I donated to it of course, but if anyone is interested, I'll DM you the link.

The JFF need to be investigated for the disappearance of that money. This smells like corruption.

Canada Soccer interim general secretary Jason deVos: “We are in a real struggle. It’s not imminent, but we need to explore what bankruptcy entails and how it might affect our organization.” https://t.co/lVCoYNWFOT

— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) June 26, 2023

Capitalism once again ruining sport. This is fucked up. The Canada women's team really shouldn't have to worry about shit like this weeks out from a World Cup where they are among the favorites.

Dutch team just announced and it looks quite strong, particularly in midfield.

They're missing their star forward in Vivienne Miedema, but they have a lot of attacking power and have brought back the core of the defense that has shown well in the Olympics and previous World Cup.

The one glaring weakness in this team is the coach. Andries Joncker has a fair amount of managerial experience, but not with a women's side and definitely not at a high profile competition like this World Cup. If he's able to get the tactics right, his side should truly challenge the USA in that group.

Fifa has confirmed that players at the Women’s World Cup will not be able to wear the rainbow armband in support of LGBTQ+ rights or OneLove armband, but will instead be able to choose from eight alternative options.

Story: @SuzyWrack https://t.co/EqiBt4aocR

— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) June 30, 2023

FIFA: We're all about that rainbow love!

Players: Cool. So we can we wear our rainbow armbands.

FIFA: Umm....no....but you can wear our armbands.

Everyone:.............

I hope the Lionesses can bring football home again. It'll be harder this time, since we're without star players Beth Mead and Leah Williamson. But I still believe we can win the World Cup.

Yeah England are missing some really key players here. Fran Kirby in particular is a big miss. When she's feeling it, she's a cheat code.

They do have Lauren James though and she's fantastic to watch. I think she's their X-factor in this tournament.

Yeah, Fran Kirby has been a fantastic player for us in recent years. It's a shame to have her miss the tournament. Hopefully Lauren James will do a great job for us. She's fantastic, so can hopefully be one of our key players.

fuck yeah pic.twitter.com/pxlN5Zy0CR

— ugh (@838_carlisle) July 6, 2023

I've watched this video at least 25 times already. This French team are a problem.

Not for everyone

Okay I should have finished watching the video before commenting

Added Australia and Zambia's squad announcements.

Australia, by virtue of being one of the hosts as well as having probably the best pure 9 (Sam Kerr) in the competition are a favorite to win this tournament. They have excellent, experienced players all over the pitch and some good depth on the bench as well. They'll go deep, I believe.

Meanwhile, Zambia, who finished 3rd at WAFCON are absolutely no pushover. They've just beat Germany in 3-2 in a friendly, in Germany. They are led by their captain and top scorer, Barbra Banda, who made a name for herself by almost single-handedly dismantling backlines at the Olympics with her most illustrious victims being the Dutch, whom she got a hat trick against, though her team lost 10-3. Her brace led them over Germany just a couple of days ago. She's only 23 and is probably the best striker not playing in a major women's league. Whoever does eventually entire her from China will have to pay quite a bit and will have an absolute superstar on their hands. One thing to note for Zambia is their coach was accused of sexual abuse and that allegation appears to have a lot of teeth.