2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Makes History

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is officially in full swing.

Australia and New Zealand are co-hosting this year’s tournament, which kicked off on Thursday. By the end of the day Tuesday, 18 games will have been played.

For the first time ever, 32 countries are participating in the tournament – that’s 20 more than when the tournament began in 1991 and eight more than the most recent edition in 2019. The competition first expanded to 16 teams in 1999 and then to 24 in 2015.

A total of 64 matches will be played at 10 different venues. It’s the first time the tournament will be held in the Southern Hemisphere and the first time it’s hosted by two countries.

After winning the last two editions of the tournament, the U.S. Women’s National Team made the tournament again this year. The team, which won its game on Friday against Vietnam, has never finished below third place and has the most titles of any other country at four.

Germany is the only other country to have won multiple Women’s World Cups.

This year, the prize purse has increased to $110 million, which is still just a quarter of the $440 million awarded at the men’s World Cup in Qatar.

Traveling to Australia or New Zealand to see the USWNT isn’t an easy journey, but the Women’s World Cup isn’t the only opportunity to see the team play this year. On Sept. 21, 2023, the women will play South Africa at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, then again on Sept. 24, 2023 at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois.

You can find tickets to the Cincinnati friendly here and the Chicago game here.

The Women’s World Cup runs through August 20. The final will be played in Sydney’s Stadium Australia.   

Photo credit: U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team