7 numbers to know ahead of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup

9: Cities across Australia and New Zealand where the tournament takes place

The 9th FIFA Women’s World Cup runs from July 20 to August 20, 2023. Australia and New Zealand are co-hosts for the tournament. Matches will take place at stadiums in Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney in Australia, and in Dunedin, Auckland, Hamilton, and Wellington in New Zealand. Co-host New Zealand will face off against Norway in the opening game on July 20 at 7pm local time in Eden Park, Auckland (for reference, that’s 8am in London and 3am in New York).

8: Squads making their World Cup debut

There are 32 countries participating in the 9th FIFA Women’s World Cup. Haiti, Morocco (whose male counterparts made a strong showing at last year’s World Cup in Qatar), Panama, the Philippines, Portugal, Ireland, Vietnam, and Zambia are the eight teams making their debut at the World Cup this year.

The teams have been split into eight groups of four, lettered A through H. The following is the full list of teams by group, and the full match schedule can be found here.

• Group A—New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Switzerland
• Group B—Australia, Canada, Nigeria, Republic of Ireland
• Group C—Costa Rica, Japan, Spain, Zambia
• Group D—China, Denmark, England, Haiti
• Group E—Netherlands, Portugal, United States, Vietnam
• Group F—Brazil, France, Jamaica, Panama
• Group G—Argentina, Italy, South Africa, Sweden
• Group H—Colombia, Germany, South Korea, Morocco 
  

4: Countries who have won a FIFA Women’s World Cup title

The USA, Germany, Japan, and Norway are the countries with FIFA Women’s World Cup titles under their belt. Among them, the US women’s national team is the most successful, having claimed the championship four times, and it’s also a strong contender to win the 2023 tournament. Others team to watch are England, Spain, Germany, and France. The Norwegian team notably had an impressive record in the 2023 World Cup qualifiers, winning every single one of their games, barring a draw against Poland.

20: Jersey number of the highest-ranking female player in FIFA

Sam Kerr, the Australian striker and captain of the Matildas (a reference to the Aussie folk song “Waltzing Matilda”), is currently ranked as number one in FIFA’s ratings, and for good reason. Kerr began playing on the national team at just age 15 and immediately drew attention for her skill and speed on the field. Now 29 years old, the well-decorated player has previously played in three other World Cups, and has scored a whopping 60 goals in international tournaments, making her the all-time leading Australian scorer for both men and women’s soccer.

Other players to watch include US striker Alex Morgan, who has already led the squad to victory on three separate occasions on the national stage, twice winning the World Cup and once an Olympic gold. Brazilian team members Marta and Debinha, both central attacking midfielders, Jamaica’s Khadija “Bunny” Shaw, Norway’s Ada Hegerberg, and Spain’s Alexia Putellas, are also powerhouse players to watch on the field.

$152 million: The highest ever prize money for a FIFA Women’s World Cup

The $152 million prize money for this year’s tournament represents a significant increase compared to previous years ($30 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2015), but it is still just about one third of the $440 million awarded to the winners of the men’s World Cup in 2022. FIFA president Gianni Infantino has said the goal is to achieve pay parity for the 2026 and 2027 World Cups and called on broadcasters and sponsors to contribute more towards that goal, offering better deals for the tournament.

$30:000: Minimum pay each player will receive in the tournament

For the first time, FIFA has decided that each player in the tournament will be paid at least $30,000, with each of the 732 participating players directly getting a fraction of the prize pool. Winning team players will receive $270,000 each.

2 minutes 56 seconds: Length of “DO IT AGAIN”

The official theme song for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is upbeat alt-rock song “DO IT AGAIN” by New Zealand singer and songwriter BENEE, and featuring Australian musician Mallrat.