Nathan Hartley
The Women's World Cup is quickly approaching. The tournament will take place in Australia and New Zealand, starting from the 20th July. Many teams will be fighting to become world champions in a tightly contested fight between the top nations. Here are some of the Group Stage games to look out for.
England Women's team celebrating their Euro final victory against Germany back in 2022 (Image Credit: Kieran Galvin/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
Group A: New Zealand vs. Norway
Lots of eyes will be on New Zealand as they are hosting the tournament, alongside Australia. They will face Norway in the opening fixture of the tournament at Eden Park, Auckland. Both team are expected to make it out of the Group Stages, as the pair have the Philippines and Switzerland alongside them in Group A. The last match between these two teams ended in a 2-0 win for Norway at their home stadium in Oslo. Could New Zealand take revenge on Norway and win at their home turf?
Group B: Australia vs. Republic of Ireland
Australia are the other nation hosting the tournament. Many believe that their next door neighbours, New Zealand, were given an easier group than the Aussies, which are believed to have the toughest group, facing Canada, Nigeria and the Republic of Ireland. The Socceroo's get their campaign kicked off at their home stadium in Sydney against the Republic of Ireland. The Irish team should prove as a physical test, as they managed to beat the World Cup holders the United States in a friendly. Australia themselves managed to beat England earlier this moth, ending the Lionesses' 30-game unbeaten streak. Therefore, both teams should be full of confidence going into the game.
Group E: United States vs. Netherlands
These two teams matched each other in the World Cup final four years ago with the United States ending victorious. It is not common for two World Cup finalists to match each other in the Group Stages in the following World Cup. Both teams are obviously expected to make it out of their group. The match between these two titans will take place in the Sky Stadium, Wellington with both nations desperate to finish top of their group.
Group F: France vs. Brazil
Once again, both of these nations are expected to get out of their group. These two nations are just like the Netherlands and the United States in the 'titans' category. This game will be a good test for France under their new manager Henré Renard, who recently coached the Saudi Arabian men's national team in Qatar last year, managing to beat World Cup winner's Argentina in their opening fixture. The two giants will battle it out in Lang Park, Brisbane.
Group H: Germany vs. Colombia
Germany is expected to go far in this year's World Cup. They managed to reach last year's Euros final, losing out to England in the end. The Germans are ranked number two in the world - only behind the United States. It is expected for them to win Group H, which would make them play the runner-up of Group F, likely Brazil or France. As for Colombia, they will be playing in the World Cup for the first time since 2015. The Colombians failed to qualify for the last World Cup in 2019?
Which matchup are you most looking forward to?
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