The FIFA Women’s World Cup begins this week in France, as the United States looks to defend its title in the 32-team event. The tournament itself begins on Friday, when France takes on South Korea in Paris, though the Americans will have to wait until next Tuesday to start their title defense against Thailand.
As you get geared up for the action, who are the favorites to hoist the trophy on July 7 in Lyon? Here are the five likeliest candidates:
5) Netherlands:
Needing a playoff to even qualify for the event, no one wants to face the up-and-coming Dutch. The 2017 European Champions struggled in the 2015 debut, winning just a lone match and quickly falling in the knockout round, but look primed for a run. Lieke Martens and Vivianne Miedema lead a scoring unit that can match the firepower of the Americans. They may not even be the favorites in Group E – that might be Canada – but if the Netherlands plays up to its potential, it could play deep into the event.
4) Germany:
The Germans haven’t lost a group stage match since 1995, so that’s the good news. The bad news is that Spain is a tricky team, and finishing second in Group B likely means a date with the US in the round of 16, so the pressure is on to win the group. The second-ranked team in the world has two of the best players in the world in Alexandra Popp and Dzsenifer Marozsan, who led the 38-goal onslaught in UEFA qualifying.
A major question comes on the defensive end, where goalkeeper Almuth Schult is fighting a shoulder injury. She started the team’s final warmup last week against Chile, indicating she should be close to full health. However, a re-occurrence could spell doom for the Germans.
3) England:
The storyline is there for England, but it’s going to be a somewhat difficult road. For starters, vice-captain Jordan Nobbs tore her ACL in November, so she’ll miss the event. The draw in Group D sees Japan looming, the same team that was the runner-up in 2015, in part thanks to a semifinal victory over the Lionesses.
On its side is as deep of a forward group as any in the tournament, giving some cushion for Fran Kirby, who is dealing with a nagging knee injury. Aside from her, Nikita Parris was named the Women’s Footballer of the Year by the Football Writers’ Association, Lucy Bronze is among the best fullbacks in the world, and Beth Mead can play pretty much anywhere up front.
2) France:
Ranked fourth in the FIFA world rankings, the home team gets a slight bump as the number two overall favorites in the event. This could be the year that Les Bleus finally break through, having advanced to at least the quarterfinals of every major tournament in the last 10 years, but never finishing higher than fourth. Standing in the way could be the Americans, who (if things play to chalk) await in the quarterfinals.
Amandine Henry is one of the best midfielders in the world as a key distributor, often to Eugenie Le Sommer, France’s second all-time leading scorer. On the other end, Sarah Bouhaddi has been named World’s Best Woman Goalkeeper three straight years. Also of note, no country has ever held the men’s and women’s World Cup crowns at the same time – so no pressure for the host country or anything.
1) United States:
Yes, once again the USWNT is the favorite in the event as the top-ranked team in the world and winners of 10 straight matches, but there are pros and cons to the draw. Though Group F also features Sweden, who beat the US in the 2016 Olympics, neither Thailand nor Chile pose much of a threat. After that, Spain (or, if the Spaniards pull off an upset… Germany) likely awaits in the Round of 16 should the US win the Group, followed by a potential clash in the quarterfinals with host-country France.
Personnel-wise, Jill Ellis has some choices to make, especially up front, where Tobin Heath, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Mallory Pugh and Christen Press are all worthy of minutes. The same can be said for the midfield, while in net Alyssa Naeher leads the way, the first time since 1991 neither Briana Scurry nor Hope Solo are on the roster.