Organising body | FIFA |
---|---|
Founded | 1991 |
Region | International |
Number of teams | 10 [lower-alpha 1] |
Current champions | Spain (1st title) |
Most successful team(s) | United States (4 titles) |
The FIFA Women's World Cup is the international association football championship for women's national teams who represent members of FIFA, the sport's global governing body. It was established in 1991 and takes place every four years with teams who qualify through continental competitions alongside the hosts. Like the men's tournament, the FIFA Women's World Cup final is the last match of the competition's knockout stage and determines the world champions in women's association football.
The most recent World Cup, hosted by Australia and New Zealand in 2023, was won by Spain, who beat England 1–0 to win their first title.
If after 90 minutes of regular play the score is a draw, an additional 30-minute period of play, called extra time, is added. If such a game is still tied after extra time it is decided by kicks from the penalty shoot-out. The winning penalty shoot-out area team are then declared champions. [1] The tournament has been decided by a one-off match on every occasion.
* | Match was won with a golden goal |
‡ | Match was won on a penalty shoot-out after extra time |
Year | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Location | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1991 | United States | 2–1 | Norway | Tianhe Stadium | Guangzhou, China | 63,000 [2] |
1995 | Norway | 2–0 | Germany | Råsunda Stadium | Stockholm, Sweden | 17,158 [3] |
1999 | United States | 0–0 ‡ | China | Rose Bowl | Pasadena, California, US | 90,185 [4] |
2003 | Germany | 2–1* | Sweden | Home Depot Center | Carson, California, US | 26,137 [5] |
2007 | Germany | 2–0 | Brazil | Hongkou Football Stadium | Shanghai, China | 31,000 [6] |
2011 | Japan | 2–2 ‡ | United States | Commerzbank-Arena | Frankfurt, Germany | 48,817 [7] |
2015 | United States | 5–2 | Japan | BC Place | Vancouver, Canada | 53,341 [8] |
2019 | United States | 2–0 | Netherlands | Parc Olympique Lyonnais | Décines-Charpieu, France | 57,900 [9] |
2023 | Spain | 1–0 | England | Stadium Australia | Sydney, Australia | 75,784 [10] |
National team | Wins | Runners-up | Total finals | Years won | Years runners-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
United States | 4 | 1 | 5 | 1991, 1999, 2015, 2019 | 2011 |
Germany | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2003, 2007 | 1995 |
Japan | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2011 | 2015 |
Norway | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1995 | 1991 |
Spain | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2023 | – |
Brazil | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 2007 |
China | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 1999 |
Netherlands | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 2019 |
Sweden | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 2003 |
England | 0 | 1 | 1 | – | 2023 |
Confederation | Appearances | Winners | Runners-up |
---|---|---|---|
UEFA | 9 | 4 | 5 |
CONCACAF | 5 | 4 | 1 |
AFC | 3 | 1 | 2 |
CONMEBOL | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Mariel Margaret Hamm-Garciaparra is an American former professional soccer player, two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion. Hailed as a football icon, she played as a forward for the United States women's national soccer team from 1987 to 2004. Hamm was the face of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), the first professional women's soccer league in the United States, where she played for the Washington Freedom from 2001 to 2003. She played college soccer for the North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team and helped the team win four NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship titles.
The FIFA Women's World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's international governing body. The competition has been held every four years and one year after the men's FIFA World Cup since 1991, when the inaugural tournament, then called the FIFA Women's World Championship, was held in China. Under the tournament's current format, national teams vie for 31 slots in a three-year qualification phase. The host nation's team is automatically entered as the 32nd slot. The tournament, called the World Cup Finals, is contested at venues within the host nation(s) over a period of about one month.
Sun Wen is a Chinese former professional footballer who played as a forward. She previously captained the China national team and the Atlanta Beat of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA).
The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT) represents the United States in men's international soccer competitions. The team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and is a member of FIFA and CONCACAF.
The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States of America in international women's soccer. The team is governed by United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF.
The Germany women's national football team represents Germany in international women's football. The team is governed by the German Football Association (DFB).
The Canada women's national soccer team represents Canada in international soccer competitions. They are overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association, the governing body for soccer in Canada.
Pia Mariane Sundhage is a Swedish football manager and former professional player. She is the head coach of the Brazil women's national team. As a player, Sundhage played most of her career as a forward and retired as the top scorer for the Sweden national team, but she also had stints playing as a midfielder and a sweeper.
The Japan women's national football team, or nicknamed Nadeshiko Japan (なでしこジャパン), represents Japan in women's association football and is run by the Japan Football Association (JFA). The only country to win every FIFA competition and the most successful women's national team in the Asian Football Confederation, its highest ranking in the FIFA Women's World Rankings is 3rd, achieved in December 2011.
Carin Leslie Jennings-Gabarra is an American retired soccer forward. She earned 117 caps with the United States women's national soccer team from 1987 to 1996 and was awarded the Golden Ball Award as the best player at the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup. In 2000, she was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame. She currently coaches women's soccer at the United States Naval Academy.
Alyssa Michele Naeher is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for National Women's Soccer League club Chicago Red Stars and the United States women's national team. She was on the 23-player roster for the United States at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup and was the starting goalkeeper for the U.S. at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France. She has also played for the Boston Breakers and Turbine Potsdam. With the Breakers, she won the 2014 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year award.
The Australia women's national soccer team is overseen by the governing body for soccer in Australia, Football Australia, which is currently a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the regional ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) since leaving the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) in 2006. The team's official nickname is "the Matildas" ; they were known as the "Female Socceroos" before 1995.
The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup final was a women's soccer match that took place on 5 July 2015 at BC Place, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to determine the winner of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. It was played between Japan and the United States, in a rematch of the 2011 final. The stakes were high for both sides: if the United States won the match, it would be the only country to have won in three Women's World Cup finals; if Japan had won instead, then it would be the first team, men's or women's, to win twice under the same coach since Vittorio Pozzo led Italy to victory in the 1934 World Cup and the 1938 World Cup. Ultimately, the United States won 5–2, winning its first title in 16 years and becoming the first team to win three Women's World Cup finals.
Rosemary Kathleen Lavelle is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for OL Reign of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), and for the United States national team.
The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup final was an association football match which determined the winner of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. It was the eighth final of the FIFA Women's World Cup, a quadrennial tournament contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The match was played on 7 July 2019 at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Décines-Charpieu, a suburb of Lyon, France.
The United States women's national soccer team is the most successful women's national team in the history of the Women's World Cup, having won four titles, earning second-place once and third-place finishes three times. The United States is one of four countries including Germany, Japan, and Norway to win a FIFA Women's World Cup.. The United States was also the only team that played the maximum number of matches possible in every tournament until they got eliminated in the round of 16 in 2023.
The Japan women's national football team has represented Japan at the FIFA Women's World Cup on nine occasions in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023. They are the only Asian team to have won the tournament, as well as the only Asian team to qualify for every edition, and they are the first team that has won the trophy with a loss during the final tournament. They also were runners-up once.
The Norway women's national football team has represented Norway at the FIFA Women's World Cup on nine occasions in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023. They were runners up in 1991. They won the following tournament in 1995. They also reached the fourth place in 1999 and in 2007.