UEFA’s done a favor for those of us completely unfamiliar with the Women’s World Cup and whipped up a primer in a jiffy for next year’s big tournament in Germany. The numbers in brackets are their current FIFA rankings, which we know are nothing to stand on, but hey – you take what you can get.
Group stage draw (26 June-6 July)
Group A: Germany (2), Canada (9), Nigeria (27), France (8)
Group B: Japan (5), New Zealand (23), Mexico (22), England (10)
Group C: United States (1), Korea DPR (6), Colombia (32), Sweden (4)
Group D: Brazil (3), Australia (12), Norway (7), Equitorial Guinea (62)
Quarter-finals
9 July: Winner Group A v Runner-up Group B (1)
9 July: Winner Group B v Runner-up Group A (2)
10 July: Winner Group C v Runner-up Group D (3)
10 July: Winner Group D v Runner-up Group C (4)
Semi-finals
13 July: Winner quarter-final 1 v Winner quarter-final 3 (1)
13 July: Winner quarter-final 2 v Winner quarter-final 4 (2)
Third-place play-off
16 July: Loser semi-final 1 v Loser semi-final 2
Final
17 July: Winner semi-final 1 v Winner semi-final 2
Past winners (hosts)
2007 Germany (China)
2003 Germany (United States)
1999 United States (United States)
1995 Norway (Sweden)
1991 United States (China)
So Group C looks like the Group O’Death and Group B the weakest of sauces. Which means New Zealand is clearly going to go undefeated for the second World Cup in a row. But in seriousness, Germany’s won the last two and now hosts the tournament. That betting line must be so even it doesn’t even show on the page.