The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is set to kick off on the 20th of this month, but who are the top 10 ranked teams going into the competition?
The FIFA Women’s World Cup began in 1991, with China hosting the inaugural competition and the United States winning it.
Since then, 5 other nations have hosted the competition, with 3 others taking home the trophy.
The United States have the best record at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, having claimed the title of world champions 4 times in 1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019.
They have also hosted twice in 1999 and 2003 and were runners-up to Japan in the 2011 competition.
This year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup will be joint hosted by Australia and New Zealand, with the action taking place between the 20th July – 20th August.
But who are the top 10 ranked teams going into the 9th instalment of the FIFA Women’s World Cup?
10 – Australia
First up at number 10 is one of the host nations of this year’s competition, Australia.
The women from down under have 3 OFC (Oceanic Football Confederation) titles to their names, as well as an AFF (ASEAN Football Federation) title and an AFC (Asian Football Confederation) title.
They have reached the quarter-finals of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 3 times, with their best placed finish being 6th in the 2007 competition in China.
It is worth noting that the women of Australia rank 10th in their competition, whereas their male counterparts sit down in 27th in the FIFA standings!
9 – Netherlands
The Netherlands is a nation that is somewhat synonymous with football, so it is no surprise to find that their women’s team ranks highly in the FIFA standings.
It may be a surprise, however, to learn that their success is relatively recently discovered.
The women of the Netherlands failed to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup until 2015, the Summer Olympics until 2020, and the UEFA European Women’s Championships until 2009.
Despite only making it to the Round of 16 in their first World Cup, the Netherlands did go on to earn runners-up at the following tournament in France in 2019 – the predecessor to the upcoming 2023 competition.
They also reached the quarter–finals of their first Summer Olympics, and became the Champions of Europe in 2019.
This recent form places them 9th in FIFA’s rankings, but could make the Netherlands a dark horse for this year’s competition!
8 – Brazil
Another name that is expected to be found near any top 10 in the world of football – Brazil.
The women of Brazil have earned a shopping list of honours, including 8 Copa América Fememina titles, 8 Torneio Internacional de Futebol Feminino titles, and 3 gold medals at the Pan American Games.
They were also runners-up in the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup and 3rd place in the 1999 competition.
Despite being knocked out in the Round of 16 in the last World Cup, the ladies of Brazil will be one to watch as always in the upcoming instalment of the competition.
7 – Canada
At number 7 we have the next door neighbours of the reigning world champions, and a country not always associated strongly with football – Canada.
Despite their men’s squad sitting down in the mid-40s of the FIFA rankings, the women of Canada have earned a list of honours that sees them placed in the top 10.
Among their many achievements they were 2020 Summer Olympics champions, 2-time CONCACAF Women’s champions (and 6 times runners-up!), and the 2011 Pan American champions.
Their highest finish in a FIFA Women’s World Cup is 4th place, with the side also reaching the quarter-finals in the 2015 instalment of the competition.
6 – Spain
Getting back to the more expected nations on a top 10 football list, we have Spain.
Similarly to the Netherlands, the Spanish women’s team didn’t come into their own until relatively recently, with their first qualification for a World Cup coming in 2015!
They were knocked out in the group stage of the 2015 tournament, and made it to the Round of 16 in the following 2019 instalment.
They also reached the semi-final stage of the 1999 UEFA Women’s Championship, and the quarter–final stages for the past 3 tournaments.
They won the Algarve Cup in 2017 and the Cyrpus Cup in 2018, with these being the only titles to their name thus far going into this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup!
5 – France
It may surprise you that a 5th ranked FIFA team, especially France, have no titles to their name thus far in their history.
The women of France in fact did not qualify for a World Cup until 2003, a UEFA Women’s Championship until 1997, or a Summer Olympics until 2008!
Their highest FIFA World Cup finish is 4th, with the side reaching the quarter–finals twice, including in the last competition in 2019.
Alongside this, they have made 3 quarter-finals and 1 semi-final in the UEFA Women’s Championships, and 2 Summer Olympic quarter-finals.
4 – England
The Three Lionesses sit at Number 4 in the FIFA World rankings going into this year’s World Cup.
Among their shopping list of accolades is a UEFA Women’s Championship title (as well as 2 x runners-up), a CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions title, 3 Cyprus Cup titles, 2 Arnold Clark Cups, 2 Mundialito titles, and a SheBelieves Cup title.
Their highest finish in the FIFA Women’s World Cup is 3rd place in 2015, with the side having reached the quarter-finals 3 times also going into this year’s competition.
3 – Sweden
Another surprising find on a football top 10 ranking is Sweden.
Their male counterparts sit down in 23rd in their FIFA rankings, but their women’s squad find themselves in the top 3 – and with good reason!
The women of Sweden have won a Women’s Euro (1984), been runners up in the competition 3 times, as well as earning 2 silver medal finishes at the Summer Olympics.
At the FIFA World Cup, they have earned runners-up in 2003 and 3rd place 3 times in 1991, 2011, and 2019!
The Swedish have also claimed 4 Algarve Cup titles, 5 Nordic Championships, 2 Cyprus Cups, a North America Cup, and an Australia Cup!
2 – Germany
In at Number 2 we have the women of Germany.
They have more than earned their ranking going into this year’s World Cup, having won the competition twice in 2003 and 2007, as well as placing runners-up in 1995, and 4th place in 1991 and 2015.
On top of their FIFA World Cup record, they have also won 8 UEFA Women’s Championships between 1989 – 2013, as well as a gold medal finish in the 2016 Summer Olympics (also bronze medals in 2000, 2004, and 2008).
The have also claimed 4 Algarve Cups and 2 Women’s World Invitational Tournaments.
1 – USA
It may come as no surprise whatsoever that the most successful team at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, and reigning champions USA fill the Number 1 spot on FIFA’s world rankings.
The women of the USA have earned more titles than any of the other sides in the FIFA top 10 rankings, more than solidifying their place at Number 1 over many years of success.
At the FIFA World Cup, they have won 4 titles in 1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019.
They have never finished below 3rd place in the competition, which they have achieved 3 times in 1995, 2003, and 2007, finishing runners-up in 2011.
On top of their remarkable World Cup record, the ladies of the States have also won gold at the Olympic Games 4 times, been champions of the CONCACAF Women’s Championships 9 times, SheBelieves Cup winners 6 times, Algarve Cup winners 10 times, and Tournament of Nations champions in 2018.
Unsurprisingly, the USA national women’s team goes into the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup of Australia / New Zealand as firm favourites to win the competition.
They are to this day the only team to finish inside of the top 3 in every FIFA Women’s World Cup to date, and have earned their No1 spot in the FIFA rankings accordingly!
England draw favourable group in 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup!
So there we have it, a run down of FIFA’s top 10 ranked teams going into the 2023 World Cup!
Who do YOU think will win the competition this year? Let us know below! 👇
