5 talking points from the Women’s World Cup

It wasn’t to be for the Lionesses this year after a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Spain in Sunday’s World Cup Final.

Despite the puncturing nature of Sunday’s Final from an English perspective, there were still plenty of talking points throughout the four-week period in Australia and New Zealand. Here are five of them below.

Germany’s early departure

Two-time Women’s World Cup winners Germany began the competition by overwhelmingly defeating Morocco with a 6-0 triumph. Although they faced a setback with a loss to Colombia in the subsequent match, the prevailing sentiment was that the European nation would progress to the knockout stage.

Contrary to expectations, Germany’s journey took an unexpected turn when they were held to a 1-1 draw by South Korea, coinciding with Morocco’s surprising 1-0 victory over Colombia. This combination of outcomes led to Germany’s untimely exit from the tournament during the group stage – an unprecedented occurrence.

Despite their persistent efforts, Alexandra Popp’s team was unable to secure a winning goal against South Korea, resulting in arguably the most astonishing upset of the tournament.

End of US dominance?

In women’s football, the USA has stood as the dominant force for several decades. They secured victory in the previous two World Cup editions and have clinched three Olympic gold medals. However, their fortunes took an unexpected turn when they were handed a surprising defeat by Sweden in the round of 16 in Melbourne.

Various other nations also faced premature eliminations, notably Canada – the reigning Olympic champions – exiting during the group stage, alongside the aforementioned Germany. Nevertheless, it was the USA’s unexpected loss in a penalty shoot-out that was perhaps the most significant in the long run.

With Megan Rapinoe’s retirement, coupled with the probable absence of key figures like Alex Morgan, Kelley O’Hara, and Alyssa Naeher from future World Cups, there is now a prevailing sense that the USA’s illustrious era has drawn to a close.

England stamp their authority

Despite tasting defeat in Sunday’s final, European Champions England have rubber-stamped their mark on women’s football by reaching the final of their last two major tournaments, and fans will identify this as a hugely significant period for English football.

While they naturally held hopes of a deep tournament run, a challenging draw on paper and the absence of Beth Mead, Fran Kirby, and Leah Williamson due to injuries, coupled with the retirement of key players the previous summer, could have easily led to a disappointing performance. However, under the guidance of Sarina Wiegman and with a squad characterised by unwavering determination, England achieved unprecedented progress by securing a spot in their first-ever World Cup final. This is a young squad that can go on to become a formidable force in future years.

Lauren James’ red card

Despite the England camp going home with a sense of optimism, one moment that arguably drew the most attention from fans back home was when Lauren James received a straight red card for a reckless stamp during the closing stages of normal time against Nigeria in the Round of 16.

The Lionesses were being held to a draw by their opponents at the time of the incident, which saw James fail to control her frustrations as she ran over the back of Michelle Alozie while the latter was on the ground.

James had excelled at the Women’s World Cup prior to Monday’s last-16 clash with Nigeria, with the Chelsea winger – sister of men’s captain Reece James – scoring three goals and contributing another three assists during the group stages. However, her inability to control her frustrations only served to put a significant dampener on proceedings by making England’s job much harder in Brisbane.

Attendance and viewership skyrockets

There were several notable records broken with regards to the Women’s World Cup. The expanded format featuring 32 teams led to a higher number of matches. Amidst the unfolding drama, the football exhibited on the field not only sustained remarkable ticket sales but also witnessed soaring TV viewership figures.

Sydney’s Stadium Australia welcomed an astonishing crowd of 75,784 spectators on three separate occasions. According to FIFA, the average attendance across the ten venues reached 28,900, marking a significant surge from the previous tournament in France and any other prior World Cup. The global audience engagement has also been notable.

Despite matches being scheduled outside of conventional prime-time slots, BBC attracted an audience of 7.3 million for England’s semi-final victory against Australia, and over 12 million for Sunday’s final. It’s clear there is an appetite for women’s football globally, and this edition of the competition will go a long way to inspire the next generation.

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