Ultimate Women's World Cup preview
It's finally time for the biggest tournament in women's football
Welcome to a refreshed Women’s World Cup edition of Go with the Flo. This is the first newsletter of what will be a daily series during the tournament.
I’m going to try and not clog your inbox with dense stuff but instead give some short, sharp daily insights and thoughts, while also pointing you in the direction of some of the great writing that many are doing around this World Cup.
This first newsletter is a biggie but it has everything you need to set you up for the start of the tournament on Thursday. There are a collection of group previews, podcasts and some of my own picks of storylines and players I’m excited to watch.
So let’s get started with some of the big things you need to know about going into this World Cup…..
It’s bigger than ever
This is the first Women’s World Cup with 32 teams. The tournament was expanded from 24 teams to 32 straight after the 2019 tournament. It’s a big expansion, especially as the tournament had only moved to 24 in 2015. Fifa is hopeful that a bigger tournament will drive competition and investment in women’s football around the world as more federations will want their women’s teams to qualify for the showpiece event. There are eight teams making their debut at this tournament: Haiti, Republic of Ireland, Morocco, Panama, Philippines, Portugal, Vietnam and Zambia. Seeing new teams qualify is massive but unfortunately there is never any guarantee that World Cup status leads to development and support for women’s football…..
Disputes and protests
One of the biggest themes of this tournament is player protest. There are several teams, including England, who are wrapped in some sort of dispute with their federation. Even teams that aren’t currently battling their national FA, they have used the tournament as a platform to make a stand in some way for equality.
There’s a big piece from Sarah Shepherd at The Athletic about protesting at major tournaments and I’m going to try and sum up some of the top line issues and teams below, as best I can!
Let’s start with England. The Lionesses have been in talks with the FA about getting improved tournament bonuses since last summers Euros win. The talks had stalled heading into the World Cup and when Fifa announced it would be paying much improved bonuses to players via their federations as part of an improved prize money agreement, some federations, including the FA, took a stand that there would be no other performance-related bonuses outside of what Fifa deliver.
Now Fifa is guaranteeing an allocation of prize money to players, from $30,000 per player for group stage participation right up to $270,000 per player for the winning team. England’s players had been negotiating with the FA to try and secure bonuses from the federation too but the players have now decided to restart conversations on bonuses after the tournament.
South Africa had also been disputing with its federation over bonuses and contracts and the issue led to head coach Desiree Ellis having to field a youth team in a pre-World Cup friendly, as the tournament-bound side protested. South Africa were able to resolve the issue after a charity (yes a charity) that supports women and vulnerable groups in South Africa stepped in. The South Africa Football Association said the donation meant that the team’s concerns had been addressed.
Elsewhere:
Australia’s players released a video via their PFA demanding more prize money for the Women’s World Cup
Jamaica’s players released a collective statement about poor preparation and support for the Women’s World Cup. A crowdfund was also set up to cover some of the team’s costs.
Canada still have not resolved a dispute with the Canada Soccer Association over pay, resources and working conditions. The team protested during the She Believes Cup in February and have been without a Collective Bargaining Agreement since 2021.
Nigeria have threatened to boycott their opening game of the World Cup as a very toxic dispute rumbled on between the players, federation and head coach Randy Waldrum. The players have been battling the federation over unpaid bonuses and fees, while the head coach has been facing the Nigeria Football Federation head on and publicly called them out over what he claims is poor World Cup preparation and general poor treatment. Here’s Osasu Obayiuwana with more details in the Guardian.
Spain and France have both battled issues with coaches. France eventually won out, replacing Corinne Diacre with Herve Renard earlier this year. Fifteen of Spain’s players took a stand against head coach Jorge Vilda last year, the coach held strong and now some of those players have returned to the national team.
TV rights
The late negotiation of TV rights deals around the world was a huge talking point for this tournament. This Women’s World Cup is the first in which the TV right’s haven’t been bundled up with the men’s World Cup. This created a bit of a stalemate between broadcasters and Fifa. The combination of no clear defined market value for the tournament and a media ecosystem that had historically undervalued women’s football was a recipe for disaster. To see TV deals announced in June before a major tournament was pretty embarrassing all round.
That’s a snapshot of one of the biggest themes around this tournament. For more info on some of these issues here’s a long read I did last month. I’ll do my best to provide some updates as it all continues!
Ones to watch - teams and players
Before I drop in some detailed group previews that I’ve enjoyed reading and will set you up nicely, I wanted to share some of the players and teams I’m looking forward to watching at the World Cup
Australia - this isn’t exactly breaking news but the hosts have all the makings of an iconic World Cup team, even if they don’t go on and win it. They have the intense and energetic head coach in Tony Gustavsson, the personality of experienced players Sam Kerr and Alanna Kennedy and then young, up and coming stars like Mary Fowler and Charli Grant.
Colombia - this team have all the makings of becoming one of the surprise packages of the World Cup. They were finalists in last summer’s Copa America Femenina and are stacked with exciting talent including Linda Caicedo and Mayra Ramirez. They’re in a tough group with Germany, South Korea and Morocco but they’re definitely ones to watch.
Zambia - These World Cup debutants have been making a splash on the world stage recently. A memorable Olympic Games in 2021 saw Barbra Banda become a star after scoring back-to-back hat tricks, becoming the first ever player to do at an Olympic Games. Even though they didn’t make it beyond the group stage they left a mark and this time around there’s once again good energy and excitement around this team. A pre-tournament friendly win against Germany was absolutely huge and it’s just Banda who could be making headlines this time around, Racheal Kundananji has scored plenty for Madrid CFF.
South Africa - the bonus dispute has been an unwelcome distraction for a team that is making only its second ever appearance at a World Cup but has plenty of promise. The WAFCON champions, led by the fearless Ellis, have shown how they can dominate teams in Africa but still need to make the next step when it comes to global competition. Thembi Kgatlana’s strong form for Racing Louisville in the NWSL will be vital for this team. They’ve never won a game at a World Cup before but this year they could achieve that and maybe even get out the group.
Cortnee Vine, Australia - Vine is Australia’s secret weapon. Her unique speed is almost unstoppable for defenders to manage, once she gets going she’s out of your sights and in the distance. The fact she’s been playing in Australia for Sydney FC and is relatively unknown, in a Matilda team stacked with players playing at top leagues in Europe, makes her even more unpredictable for the opposition.
Mary Fowler, Australia - Fowler has been tipped for greatness for a while but we’re yet to see just how good she can be. She’s shown her quality in flashes with Australia and had very limited game time with Manchester City. She’s positionally versatile, can score and carry the ball well. She could be a match-winner for Australia this World Cup and finished preparations in style, scoring the only goal in their final warm up game, a 1-0 against France.
Maika Hamano, Japan - With Mana Iwabuchi not picked for this World Cup, 19-year-old Hamano could be getting a starring role in Australia and New Zealand. She’s starred at a World Cup before, at last year’s Under-20 tournament, where she won the golden ball and played a key part in Japan’s run to the final. One of the most exciting teenagers in world football, it remains to be see how much part she’s going to play in a Japan team struggling for goals.
Sophia Smith, USA - Everyone is talking about this 22-year-old and Nike’s expectations are so high they’ve made her THE face of their World Cup campaign. There’s lots of pressure on her but she can absolutely deliver. Last year’s POTY in the NWSL, she’s one of the best strikers in women’s football right now.
Group Previews
I’ve recorded four World Cup preview shows with my Counter Pressed team in the lead up to this tournament and they’re all available to listen to now wherever you get your podcasts.
There’s also so much good writing out there. Here are some of my favourite preview articles:
The good people at Opta have done a big collection of data-led group previews to get stuck into.
The Guardian and The Athletic have done some huge player pieces. Guardian have a guide to all of the players taking part in the tournament (you can also jump to a specific group) while The Athletic have their Radar scouting list.
Hopefully this all sets you up for the big day on Thursday!
See you for the next update after the opening round of games. Drop in the comments anything you would love talked about or what you’re looking forward to this summer.
Nice work Flo