The 2019 Women’s World Cup pits together 24 women’s national teams of the member associations of the Federation Internationale de Football Association. The showpiece tournament in France starts on June 7 and finished on July 7. France will host the tournament for the first time in the history of the World Cup finals, with games being planned for nine cities across France. The tournament hosts take on Korea Republic at Parc des Princes in the opening game of the tournament, whilst Groupama Stadium in Lyon will host the title game.
France were among five countries which indicated interest in hosting the 2019 Women’s World Cup finals. The likes of England, Korea Republic, New Zealand and South Africa were determined to host the major tournament and in October 2014 the list was cut to two. France and South Korea were the countries which made official bids for hosting the 2019 World Cup, with the nations submitting their documents before October 31, 2014.
Nonetheless, France eventually won the bid to host both U-20 Women’s World Cup and Women’s World Cup. As a result, France became the fourth country to host both women’s and men’s World Cup finals. The Western Europe country hosted Men’s World Cup finals on two occasions (1938, 1998).
Slot allocation for the 2019 Women’s World Cup finals was approved on 13-14 October, 2016, with the slots for each football confederation being unchanged from those of the 2015 tournament. There was only one exception as slot for the host nation has been moved from CONCACAF (Canada) to UEFA (France).
AFC (Asia): 5 slots
CAF (Africa): 3 slots
CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean): 3 slots
CONMEBOL (South America): 2 slots
OFC (Oceania): 1 slot
UEFA (Europa): 8 slots
Tournament hosts: 1 slot
CONCACAF-CONMEBOL play-offs: 1 slot
2019 Women’s World Cup finals started on April 3, 2017 and ended on December 1, 2018.
A total of 24 teams will participate at the upcoming tournament in France. Rankings are shown in parenthesis.
AFC: Australia (6), China PR (16), Japan (7), South Korea (14), Thailand (34)
CAF: Cameroon (46), Nigeria (38), South Africa
CONCACAF: Canada (5), Jamaica (53), USA (1)
CONMEBOL: Argentina (37), Brazil (10), Chile (39)
OFC: New Zealand (19)
UEFA: England (3), France (hosts) (4), Germany (2), Italy (15), Netherlands (8), Norway (12), Scotland (20), Spain (13), Sweden (9)
The likes of Jamaica, Scotland and South Africa qualified for the Women’s World Cup finals for the first time ever, whereas Brazil, Germany, Japan, Nigeria, Norway, Sweden and USA will participate at the World Cup for the eighth time.
A number of modern stadiums were reconstructed for the 2018 Men’s World Cup finals in France and those venues will be used for the upcoming tournament for women. Twelve cities were candidates to host the 2019 Women’s World Cup games, with 9 stadiums eventually being chosen. The likes of Stade Marcel-Picot, Stade de la Beaujoire and Stade de l’Abbe-Deschamps were cut from the list.
2019 World Cup games will be played on 9 stadiums in France:
Groupama Stadium, Lyon
Groupama Stadium is the home of French side Olympique Lyon. The venue was opened on January 9, 2012, with the capacity of 59,186.
Parc des Princes, Paris (48,583)
Parc des Princes is one of the most beautiful stadiums of Paris. PSG’s home ground can hold up to 48,583 spectators and it was opened on June 4, 1972.
Allianz Riviera, Nice
Opened in September, 2013, Allianz Riviera is the home of Ligue 1 side Nice. The capacity of the venue is 35, 624, but it can hold up to 44,624 people during the concerts.
Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier
Formerly a 16,000-seater stadium, Stade de la Mosson has a capacity of 32,900 nowadays. Ligue 1 side Montpellier welcome their rivals at the venue which was opened back in January, 1972.
Roazhon Park, Rennes
Roazhon Park was opened back in 1912 under the name of Stade de la Route de Lorient. Nowadays the venue is the home ground of Ligue 1 side Rennes, with the capacity of 29,164.
Stade Oceane, Le Havre
Stade Oceane is one of the newest stadiums in France. The venue was opened on July 12, 2012 and it has the capacity of 25,178. Ligue 2 side Le Havre play their home games at Stade Oceane.
Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes
Stade du Hainaut is a multi-use venue in Valenciennes. The stadium was opened on July 26, 2011, with the capacity of 25,172. The stadium can hold up to 40,000 spectators during the concerts.
Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims
Stade Auguste-Delaune is the home ground of Ligue 1 team Reims. The capacity of the stadium is 21, 127 and the construction cost €60 million. Stade Auguste-Delaune was opened on June 2, 1935.
Stade des Alpes, Grenoble
Opened on February 15, 2008, Stade des Alpes is one of most beautiful stadiums in France. Grenoble welcome their rivals at Stade des Alpes, the venue which can hold up to 20,068 fans.
Some of these stadiums were used the 2016 Men’s European Championship: Parc Olympique in Lyon, Allianz Riviera in Nice, and Parc des Princes in Paris. PSG’s home ground hosted games at both 1998 and 1938 Men’s World Cup. Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier was used at the 1998 tournament.
As previously mentioned, the opening game of the 2019 Women’s World Cup will be played at Parc des Princes in Paris, whilst both semi-finals and final of the tournament will be hosted by Groupama Stadium in Lyon.
27 referees and 48 assistant referees were elected for the 2019 World Cup finals. VAR technology will be used for the first time in the history of the World Cup.
Kate Jacewicz (Australia)
Qin Liang (China)
Casey Reibelt (Australia)
Ri Hyang-ok (North Korea)
Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan)
Lidya Tafesse Abebe (Ethiopia)
Gladys Lengwe (Zambia)
Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda)
Marie-Soleil Beaudoin (Canada)
Melissa Borjas (Honduras)
Carol Chenard (Canada)
Ekaterina Koroleva (USA)
Lucila Venegas (Mexico)
Edina Alves Batista (Brazil)
Maria Carvajal (Chile)
Laura Fortunato (Argentina)
Claudia Umpierrez (Uruguay)
Anna-Marie Keighley (New Zealand)
Jana Adamkova (Czech Republic)
Sandra Braz (Portugal)
Stephanie Frappart (France)
Riem Hussein (Germany)
Katalin Kulcsar (Hungary)
Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine)
Pustovoitova (Russia)
Esther Staubli (Switzerland)
Bibiana Steinhaus (Germany)
Makoto Bozono (Japan)
Fang Yan (China)
Maiko Hagio (Japan)
Hong Kum-nyo (North Korea)
Kim Kyoung-min (South Korea)
Lee Seul-gi (South Korea)
Naomi Teshirogi (Japan)
Bernadettar Kwimbira (Malawi)
Mary Njoroge (Kenya)
Lidwine Rakotozafinoro (Madagascar)
Queency Victoire (Mauritius)
Chantal Boudreau (Canada)
Princess Brown (Jamaica)
Enedina Caudillo (Mexico)
Mayte Chavez (Mexico)
Felisha Mariscal (USA)
Kathryn Nesbitt (USA)
Shirley Perello (Honduras)
Stephanie-Dale Yee Sing (Jamaica)
Monica Amboya (Ecuador)
Neuza Back (Brazil)
Mary Blanco (Colombia)
Mariana De Almeida (Argentina)
Luciana Mascarana (Uruguay)
Tatiane Sacilotti (Brazil)
Loreto Toloza (Chile)
Leslie Vasquez (Chile)
Sarah Jones (New Zealand)
Maria Salamasina (Samoa)
Oleksandra Ardasheva (Ukraine)
Kylie Cockburn (Scotland)
Petruța Iugulescu (Romania)
Chrysoula Kourompylia (Greece)
Susanne Kung (Switzerland)
Ekaterina Kurochkina (Russia)
Julia Magnusson (Sweden)
Sian Massey (England)
Manuela Nicolosi (France)
Michelle O’Neill (Republic of Ireland)
Katrin Rafalski (Germany)
Lisa Rashid (England)
Lucie Ratajova (Czech Republic)
Sanja Rođak-Karsic (Croatia)
Maryna Striletska (Ukraine)
Maria Sukenikova (Slovakia)
Mihaela Tepusa (Romania)
Katalin Torok (Hungary)
La Seine Musicale (Boulogne-Billancourt) hosted the draw for the 2019 Women’s World Cup finals. 24 nations were drawn into six groups of four teams.
Pot 1: France, USA, Germany, England, Canada, Australia
Pot 2: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Brazil, Spain, Norway
Pot 3: South Korea, China, Italy, New Zealand, Scotland, Thailand
Pot 4: Argentina, Chile, Nigeria, Cameroon, South Africa, Jamaica
After the draw host France were grouped with South Korea, Norway and Nigeria (Group A), whilst Germany will face the likes of China, Spain and South Africa in Group B.
The likes of Italy, Australia, Brazil and Jamaica will competed in Group C, whereas England have been grouped with the likes of Scotland, Argentina and Japan (Group D).
2015 World Cup hosts Canada will take on Cameroon, New Zealand and Netherlands in Group E. Fellow CONCACAF side USA have been grouped with the likes of Thailand, Chile and Sweden (Group F).
Top two teams from each group will book their place in the last 16 of the World Cup, with four best third-placed sides advancing to the knockout stages as well.
Ranking of the teams in the groups stages is determined as follows.
Schedule and fixtures
7 June 2019, 21:00
France vs South Korea (Parc des Princes, Paris)
8 June 2019, 21:00
Norway vs Nigeria (Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims)
12 June 2019, 15:00
Nigeria vs South Korea (Stade des Alpes, Grenoble)
12 June 2019, 21:00
France vs Norway (Allianz Riviera, Nice)
17 June 2019, 21:00
Nigeria vs France (Roazhon Park, Rennes)
17 June 2019, 21:00
South Korea vs Norway (Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims)
8 June 2019, 15:00
Germany vs China PR (Roazhon Park, Rennes)
8 June 2019, 18:00
Spain vs South Africa (Stade Océane, Le Havre)
12 June 2019, 18:00
Germany vs Spain (Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes)
13 June 2019, 21:00
South Africa vs China PR (Parc des Princes, Paris)
17 June 2019, 18:00
South Africa vs Germany (Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier)
17 June 2019, 18:00
China PR vs Spain (Stade Océane, Le Havre)
9 June 2019, 13:00
Australia vs Italy (Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes)
9 June 2019, 15:30
Brazil vs Jamaica (Stade des Alpes, Grenoble)
13 June 2019, 18:00
Australia vs Brazil (Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier)
14 June 2019, 18:00
Jamaica vs Italy (Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims)
18 June 2019, 21:00
Jamaica vs Australia (Stade des Alpes, Grenoble)
18 June 2019, 21:00
Italy vs Brazil (Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes)
9 June 2019, 18:00
England vs Scotland (Allianz Riviera, Nice)
10 June 2019, 18:00
Argentina vs Japan (Parc des Princes, Paris)
14 June 2019, 15:00
Japan vs Scotland (Roazhon Park, Rennes)
14 June 2019, 21:00
England vs Argentina (Stade Océane, Le Havre)
19 June 2019, 21:00
Japan vs England (Allianz Riviera, Nice)
19 June 2019, 21:00
Scotland vs Argentina (Parc des Princes, Paris)
10 June 2019, 21:00
Canada vs Cameroon (Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier)
11 June 2019, 15:00
New Zealand vs Netherlands (Stade Océane, Le Havre)
15 June 2019, 15:00
Netherlands vs Cameroon (Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes)
15 June 2019, 21:00
Canada vs New Zealand (Stade des Alpes, Grenoble)
20 June 2019, 18:00
Netherlands vs Canada (Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims)
20 June 2019, 18:00
Cameroon vs New Zealand (Stade de la Mosson, Montpellier)
11 June 2019, 18:00
Chile vs Sweden (Roazhon Park, Rennes)
11 June 2019, 21:00
United States vs Thailand (Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims)
16 June 2019, 15:00
Sweden vs Thailand (Allianz Riviera, Nice)
16 June 2019, 18:00
United States vs Chile (Parc des Princes, Paris)
20 June 2019, 21:00
Sweden vs United States (Stade Océane, Le Havre)
20 June 2019, 21:00
Thailand vs Chile (Roazhon Park, Rennes)
Ranking: 4th
World Cup record: Quarter-finals, 2015
Coach: Corinne Diacre
Key players: Gaetane Thiney, Amandine Henry, Wendine Renard
Ranking: 38th
World Cup record: Quarter-finals, 1999
Coach: Thomas Dennerby
Key Players: Tochuwku Oluehi, Onome Ebi, Francisca Ordega
Ranking: 13
World Cup record: Champions, 1995
Coach: Martin Sjogren
Key players: Isabell Herlovsen, Maren Mjelde, Caroline Graham Hansen
Ranking: 14th
World Cup record: Round of 16, 2015
Coach: Yoon Deok-yeo
Key players: Cho So-hyun, Jeon Ga-eul, Ji So-yun
Ranking: 2nd
World Cup record: Champions 2003, 2007
Coach: Martina Voss-Tecklenburg
Key players: Alexandra Popp, Dzsenifer Maroszan, Almuth Schult
Ranking: 16th
World Cup record: Runner-up, 1999
Coach: Jia Xiuquan
Key players: Li Ying, Wang Shanshan, Wang Shuang
Ranking: 13th
World Cup record: Group stages, 2015
Coach: Jorge Vilda
Key Players: Marta Torrejon, Amanda Sampedro, Virginia Sampedro
Ranking: 49th
World Cup record: First appearance
Coach: Desiree Ellis
Key players: Thembi Kgatlana, Lebohang Ramalepe, Janine Van Wyk
Ranking: 6th
World Cup record: Quarter-finals, 2007
Coach: Ante Milicic
Key players: Sam Kerr, Steph Catley, Kyah Simon
Ranking: 15th
World Cup record: Quarter-finals, 1991
Coach: Milena Bertolini
Key players: Laura Giuliani, Sara Gama, Barbara Bonansea
Ranking: 10th
World Cup record: Runner-up, 2007
Coach: Vadao
Key players; Marta, Cristiane, Debinha
Ranking: 53rd
World Cup record: First appearance
Coach: Hue Menzies
Key players: Konya Plummer, Jody Brown, Khadija Shaw
Ranking: 3rd
World Cup record: Bronze medal, 2015
Coach: Phil Neville
Key players: Jodie Taylor, Lucy Bronze, Steph Houghton
Ranking: 20th
World Cup record: First appearance
Coach: Shelley Kerr
Key players: Rachel Corsie, Jennifer Beattie, Kim Little
Ranking: 37th
World Cup record: Group stages, 2003, 2007
Coach: Carlos Borrello
Key players: Belen Potassa, Soledad Jaimes, Estefania Banini
Ranking: 7th
World Cup record: Champions, 2011
Coach: Asako Takakura
Key players: Kumi Yokoyama, Saki Kumagai, Rumi Utsugi
Ranking: 5th
World Cup record: Semi-finals, 2003
Coach: Kenneth Heiner-Moller
Key players: Christine Sinclair, Kadeisha Buchanan, Ashley Lawrence
Ranking: 46th
World Cup record: Round of 16, 2015
Coach: Alain Djeumfa
Key players: Madeleine Ngono, Gaelle Enganamouit, Christine Manie
Ranking: 19th
World Cup record: Group stages, 1991, 2007, 2011, 2015
Coach: Tom Sermanni
Key players: Katie Bowen, Erin Nayler, Sarah Gregorius
Ranking: 8th
World Cup record: Round of 16, 2015
Coach: Sarina Wiegman
Key players: Lieke Martens, Shanice van de Sanden, Loes Geurts
Ranking: 1st
World Cup record: Champions 1991, 1999, 2015
Coach: Jill Ellis
Key players: Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn, Alex Morgan
Ranking: 34th
World Cup record: Group stages, 2015
Coach: Nuengruethai Sathongwien
Key players: Rattikan Thongsombut, Kanjana Sungngoen, Wilaiporn Boothduang
Ranking: 39th
World Cup record: First appearance
Coach: Jose Letelier
Key players: Christiane Endler, Carla Guerrero, Francisca Lara
Ranking: 9th
World Cup record: Runner-up, 2003
Coach: Peter Gerhardsson
Key players: Caroline Seger, Stina Blackstenius, Hedvig Lindahl