WOMEN'S WORLD CUP 2023
Women’s World Cup 2023: what happens if two teams end up with the same points in the group stage?
With each team playing just three group matches, there is every chance that tie-breakers may be needed.
For the first time in the competition’s history, 32 nations will take part in the Women’s World Cup 2023, bringing the tournament in line with the men’s version, albeit briefly (48 teams will feature in the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, in case you’d missed it).
What format is used in the Women’s World Cup 2023 group stage?
For those of you who have followed any Men’s World Cup from 1998 onwards, there’s a good chance you’ll be familiar with the format being used in Australia and New Zealand. The 32 countries have been split into eight group (A to H) of four teams, who will all play each other once in the first stage. Once all group games have been completed, the top two teams from each group will qualify for the round of 16 and the bottom two will be heading home.
With each team playing only three group games, there is a high probability of two - or perhaps more - finishing on the same number of points at the end of the first round. So how can they be separated?
What tie-breakers are used in the group stage?
Different competitions sometimes vary with which tie-braking system they use. LaLiga, for instance, uses head-to-head matches between two or more teams who are level on points as the main tie-breaker, whereas the Premier League uses goal difference.
In the Women’s World Cup 2023, goal difference will be used the first tie-breaker, as is the case in the men’s tournament. Should the teams still be level, then the one who has scored most goals across the three matches will finish higher.
Points c), d) and e) in the table below are different elements related to head-to-head games between the teams involved. Fair play is then taken into consideration, with the drawing of lots the final straw. Surely no team has ever been that unlucky…?
FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 regulations
If two or more teams in the same group are equal on points after the completion of the group stage, the following criteria, in the order below, shall be applied to determine the ranking:
Step 1:
- (a) superior goal difference in all group matches;
- (b) greatest number of goals scored in all group matches.
Step 2:
If two or more teams in the same group are equal on the basis of the above two criteria, their rankings will be determined as follows:
- (c) greatest number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned;
- (d) superior goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned;
- (e) greatest number of goals scored in all group matches between the teams concerned;
- (f) highest team conduct score relating to the number of yellow and red cards obtained: - yellow card: minus 1 point - indirect red card (as a result of two yellow cards): minus 3 points - direct red card: minus 4 points - yellow card and direct red card: minus 5 points Only one of the above deductions shall be applied to a player in a single match. The team with the highest number of points shall be ranked highest.
- (g) drawing of lots by FIFA.
With respect to the second step, all affected teams will be ranked by applying the criteria (c) to (g) in order. If one team qualifies for a higher or lower ranking pursuant to one criterion but it is not possible to rank all teams on the basis of the same criterion, the remaining two or three teams will be ranked pursuant to the next criterion, and so on. In any case, the second step of the ranking does not restart fo
Have teams ever drawn lots at the World Cup?
Well, it has actually been done once before in the World Cup, back in 1990. However, on the occasion, it was to decide whether the Netherlands or the Republic Ireland qualified from their group as runners-up or in third spot, with some third-placed teams going through to the knockout stages in a 24-team tournament.
Mexico and Poland narrowly avoid fair play tie-breaker in Qatar
At the Qatar 2022 Men’s World Cup, Poland qualified from Group C ahead of Mexico thanks to their superior goal difference, as did Spain in Group E instead of Germany. In Group H, meanwhile, South Korea progressed at Uruguay’s expense by virtue of having scored more goals.
Had El Tri not conceded a late goal in their win over Saudi Arabia in their final group game, they and Poland would have finished the group level on points, goal difference and goals scored. With the game between the pair ending in a goalless draw, their fate would have come down to their respective fair play records (Poland would still have progressed).