How each team at the Women’s World Cup can qualify for the knockout round

The Women’s World Cup group stage is reaching a crucial stage, with some teams potentially securing a spot in the round of 16 after just two matches. This article provides an overview of all eight groups and the scenarios required for each team to progress to the knockout rounds. It also highlights the teams that have already qualified and those that have been eliminated. Tiebreakers are also explained, outlining the criteria used to determine standings in case of equal points and goal differences.

QUALIFIED FOR ROUND OF 16: Japan, Spain

ELIMINATED: Costa Rica, Zambia, Republic of Ireland, Vietnam

GROUP A:

Sunday, July 30: Switzerland vs. New Zealand, Norway vs. Philippines

Switzerland currently leads their group and is considered the favorite to advance to the next stage. They are guaranteed to progress with a win or draw against co-hosts New Zealand.

A victory would ensure Switzerland finishes as group winners, while a draw would be sufficient if the Philippines does not defeat Norway.

Even if Switzerland loses, they could still qualify in second place, but that would depend on the result between the Philippines and Norway. In that scenario, if the Philippines draws and Switzerland loses by one or two goals, the standings would be as follows: 1. New Zealand, 2. Switzerland, 3. Philippines, 4. Norway. However, if Switzerland loses by three goals, the tiebreaker would be goals scored between the two teams. If the goals scored are the same, it goes head-to-head, and Switzerland would advance based on their victory in the group game.

If Switzerland loses by four or more goals and Norway wins, the final standings would look like this: 1. New Zealand, 2. Philippines, 3. Switzerland, 4. Norway.

If Switzerland loses and Norway wins, second place would be decided on the goal difference between the two countries. Norway needs to make up a goal difference deficit of three, meaning they must win by at least one more goal than Switzerland loses, or Switzerland must lose by at least one more goal than Norway wins.

If Switzerland and Norway lose by one goal each, the standings would be: 1. New Zealand, 2. Switzerland, 3. Norway, 4. Philippines.

If Norway wins by two goals and Switzerland loses by one goal, the tiebreaker would be goals scored between the two teams. If the goals scored are the same, it goes head-to-head, which ends in a draw. In that case, Fair Play points would be used, with Switzerland at minus-2 and Norway at minus-1. If Fair Play points are equal, it would be decided by a random drawing of lots for second place.

If Norway wins by one goal and Switzerland loses by two, the tiebreaker would be goals scored between the two teams. If the goals scored are the same, it goes head-to-head, which ends in a draw. In that case, Fair Play points would be used, with Switzerland at minus-2 and Norway at minus-1. If Fair Play points are equal, it would be decided by a random drawing of lots for second place.

In any other scenario where the margin is greater (with either Norway winning or Switzerland losing by more), Norway would finish in second place: 1. New Zealand, 2. Norway, 3. Switzerland, 4. Philippines.

GROUP B:

Monday, July 31: Canada vs. Australia, Republic of Ireland vs. Nigeria

CANADA: To secure qualification for the knockout stages, Canada needs at least a draw against Australia, but a defeat to the co-hosts would put their continued participation at risk. If Canada loses and Nigeria wins, Canada will be eliminated, resulting in the following standings: 1. Nigeria, 2. Australia, 3. Canada, 4. Republic of Ireland.

If Canada loses and Nigeria draws, Canada will still be eliminated, with the standings as follows: 1. Australia, 2. Nigeria, 3. Canada, 4. Republic of Ireland. If Canada and Nigeria lose, the second-place position will be determined by the goal difference between the two teams. If that is level, head-to-head results will be considered, but since their group match ended in a draw, the placings will be decided based on Fair Play points and if still tied, by random drawing of lots.

NIGERIA: To ensure qualification for the knockout stages, Nigeria needs at least a draw against the Republic of Ireland, but there is a possibility of elimination if they are beaten by the Irish. If Nigeria loses and Canada wins, Nigeria will still progress, and the standings will be: 1. Canada, 2. Nigeria, 3. Australia, 4. Republic of Ireland. If Nigeria loses and Australia draws, second place will be determined by the goal difference between Nigeria and Australia. If that is level, head-to-head results will be considered, and since Nigeria won the group match against Australia, they will finish in second place. If both Nigeria and Canada lose, they will be tied on four points (see Canada section for tiebreakers).

AUSTRALIA: Going into the final group game in third place, Australia needs a positive result to continue in the competition. The Matildas are assured of qualification with a win over Canada. If Australia draws with Canada, they can only qualify if Nigeria loses to the Republic of Ireland. Second place will be decided by goal difference between Australia and Nigeria, and if that is the same, Nigeria will finish second based on their head-to-head result. Australia cannot qualify with a loss.

IRELAND: Having been eliminated, Ireland must defeat Nigeria to have any chance of avoiding finishing bottom of the group.

GROUP C

Monday, July 31: Japan vs. Spain, Costa Rica vs. Zambia

SPAIN: Spain has secured qualification for the round of 16 and will finish at the top of the group if they win or draw against Japan.

JAPAN: Japan has also advanced to the round of 16 but to secure the top spot in the group, they must defeat Spain.

COSTA RICA: Unfortunately, Costa Rica has been eliminated from the tournament.

ZAMBIA: Similarly, Zambia has also been eliminated from the competition.

GROUP D

Friday, July 28: England vs. Denmark, China vs. Haiti

England and Denmark have both won their opening games and are set to play against each other on Friday.

If England wins their match, they will secure a spot in the next round, as long as China does not defeat Haiti later on Friday.

Similarly, if Denmark wins their match, they will advance to the next round, provided that Haiti does not defeat China.

If China loses to Haiti, however, they will be eliminated from the tournament if England draws or wins against Denmark.

Likewise, if Haiti loses to China, they will be eliminated from the tournament if Denmark achieves a draw or victory against England.

GROUP E

Tuesday, Aug. 1: Portugal vs. United States, Vietnam vs. Netherlands

UNITED STATES: The United States needs at least one point to qualify for the next round and will top the group if they win unless the Netherlands wins by a greater margin of at least 2+ goals. If both the United States and the Netherlands win and finish with equal goal difference and goals scored (e.g., Portugal 0-3 United States; Vietnam 0-5 Netherlands), then their records will be identical, and the top spot will be decided first on Fair Play (as the group game was a draw), and then by drawing lots.

If the United States draws and the Netherlands wins, the final standings will be as follows: 1. Netherlands, 2. United States, 3. Portugal, 4. Vietnam

If the United States draws and the Netherlands loses or draws, the United States will win the group.

If the United States loses, they cannot qualify if the Netherlands wins or draws.

If both the United States and the Netherlands lose, the two teams will be tied on four points, and the United States will advance to the next round unless they lose by a greater margin of at least 2+ goals compared to the Netherlands. If the two teams finish level on goal difference and goals scored (e.g., Portugal 3-0 United States; Vietnam 3-2 Netherlands), then their records will be identical, and the second-place position would be determined first on Fair Play (as the group game was a draw), and then by drawing lots. In this case, Portugal would win the group.

NETHERLANDS: The Netherlands needs at least one point to qualify and will top the group with a victory if they achieve a better result than the United States or win by a greater margin of at least 2+ goals. If the United States and the Netherlands win and finish with equal goal difference and goals scored, the tiebreakers mentioned in the USA section will apply.

If the Netherlands loses, they are certain to advance if the United States wins.

If the Netherlands and the United States both lose, the teams will be tied for second place on four points, and the tiebreakers mentioned in the Netherlands section will apply.

If the Netherlands loses and Portugal draws, two teams will be tied on four points, and the Dutch will be eliminated due to their inferior goal difference. The final standings in this scenario would be: 1. United States, 2. Portugal, 3. Netherlands, 4. Vietnam

PORTUGAL: Portugal is guaranteed to qualify with a win against the United States, and they will top the group if the Netherlands loses or draws.

If Portugal draws, they can only qualify if the Netherlands loses. In this case, both teams will be tied on four points in the second position, and Portugal will have the superior goal difference.

Portugal cannot qualify if they lose.

VIETNAM: Vietnam has been eliminated from the tournament.

GROUP F

Saturday, July 29: France vs. Brazil, Panama vs. Jamaica

Wednesday, Aug. 2: Panama vs. France, Jamaica vs. Brazil

After the second round of matches, only Brazil has the chance to qualify for the round of 16, and they will secure their spot with a victory over France on Saturday.

However, Panama will be eliminated if they lose to Jamaica in their second group game.

GROUP G

Friday, July 28: Argentina vs. South Africa

Saturday, July 29: Sweden vs. Italy

Wednesday, Aug. 2: Argentina vs. Sweden, South Africa vs. Italy

Sweden and Italy both emerged victorious in their opening games and are set to compete against each other on Saturday.

The qualification scenarios go as follows:

GROUP H

Sunday, July 30: South Korea vs. Morocco, Germany vs. Colombia

Thursday, Aug. 3: South Korea vs. Germany, Morocco vs. Colombia

Germany and Colombia secured victories in their initial matches and are now scheduled to face each other on Sunday.

The qualification scenarios are as follows: