Back
Australia & New Zealand To Host 2023 Women’s World Cup
Fifa has announced that Australia and New Zealand will host the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
The joint bid got the nod ahead of Colombia, the only other bid, after Brazil and Japan dropped out of the running earlier in June.
The 2023 edition will be the first to feature 32 sides, up from the current 24.
The Australia and New Zealand bid received 22 of the 35 votes cast by the Fifa Council members, with Colombia getting 13 votes.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino said: “The bidding process was highly competitive. We would like to thank both of the bidders for their remarkable work. It was really, really well prepared.”
Inflanto expressed surprise that Colombia won so many votes despite only scoring 2.8 out of 5.0 in Fifa’s technical evaluation of each bid. Australia and New Zealand was marked 4.1.
“These (technical bid) reports have to mean something,” said Infantino.
Uefa said its members voted for Colombia as it “represented a strategic opportunity for the development of women’s football in South America”.
Australia and New Zealand’s joint bid promised “an unprecedented level of investment” in the tournament.
The president of New Zealand Football, Johanna Wood, said: “We believe we have been given a treasure, and we will look after that treasure.
“We will work towards putting women’s football even more front and centre on the world stage.”
/Stewart Sports news editor
