The draw for 2023 FIFA’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand was held at the Aotea Centre in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday.
Four African teams gained places in groups B, C, G and H.
Based on the latest FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking, the 29 qualified teams and three play-off tournament slot placeholders were allocated to eight pots of four teams each.
Opening matches are schedule for July 20, 2023.
Host New Zealand will play against Norway in Auckland at 7 p.m. local time (UTC+13) on July 20, 2023.
On the same day, co-host Australia will meet Ireland at 8 p.m. local time in Sydney (UTC +11) for the match of group B.
Nigeria’s tournament opener will be on July 21, against Canada. The African giant will then battle against the co-host on July 27 at the Brisbane Stadium.
Zambia, last WAFCON bronze medalist, will kick off their tournament on July 22. They will be faced with Japan, the winners of the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. In group C, they will also meet Costa Rica and Spain.
African champions, the Banyana Banyana will play Sweden on July 23. A challenge from the outset.
Indeed, the Swede are the bronze medalists of the last edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The South Africans will also face a battle against Italy and Argentina.
In group H, Morocco, last WAFCON host and finalist will have their match opener on July 24 against Germany. Colombia and Korea Republic are also in the same group.
Spots to be filled
One spot in group D, E and F still need to be filled.
They are destined for national teams that do not directly qualify for the final competition. The teams will be determined by means of a ten-team play-off tournament.
AFC: Chinese Taipei, Thailand
CAF: Cameroon, Senegal
Concacaf: Haiti, Panama
CONMEBOL: Chile, Paraguay
OFC: Papua New Guinea
UEFA: Portugal
The contenders in playoff A are: Cameroon, Portugal and Thailand. Only one team will integrate group E.
The contenders in playoff B are: Chile, Senegal and Haïti. Only one team will integrate group D.
The contenders in playoff C are: Chinese Taipei, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Panama. Only one team will integrate group F.
The playoffs are scheduled from February 17 to February 23.
Ticket packages are currently on general sale, with single match pass tickets available from 25 October.
The USA won the last edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup final will be played in Sydney on August 20, 2023.
Source: Africa News