The stage is set for the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

FIFA’s intercontinental play-in tournament determined the final three spots in the 32-team field, including the final group-stage opponent for the U.S. women’s national team.

The USWNT will enter this summer’s tournament looking to defend its 2019 title. The reigning champions have drawn 2019 finals opponent the Netherlands in their group, while 2021 Olympic champion Canada features in Group B alongside co-host Australia.

What is the World Cup format?

The 32 teams are split into eight groups of four countries each. In each group, the two highest-finishing teams will advance to a 16-team bracket for the knockout rounds.

What is the World Cup schedule?

New Zealand and Australia will kick off the tournament as hosts on Thursday, July 20. All times listed below are Eastern Time.

Group A: New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Switzerland

• Thursday, July 20
  • 3 a.m. — New Zealand vs. Norway (Eden Park, Auckland)
• Friday, July 21
  • 1 a.m. — Philippines vs. Switzerland (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)
• Tuesday, July 25
  • 1:30 a.m. — New Zealand vs. Philippines (Wellington Regional)
  • 4 a.m. — Switzerland vs. Norway (Waikato, Hamilton)
• Sunday, July 30
  • 3 a.m. — Switzerland vs. New Zealand (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)
  • 3 a.m. — Norway vs. Philippines (Eden Park, Auckland)

Group B: Australia, Ireland, Nigeria, Canada

• Thursday, July 20
  • 6 a.m. — Australia vs. Ireland (Sydney Football Stadium)
• Friday, July 21
  • 10:30 p.m. — Nigeria vs. Canada (Melbourne Rectangular)
• Wednesday, July 26
  • 8 a.m. — Canada vs. Ireland (Perth Rectangular)
• Thursday, July 27
  • 6 a.m. — Australia vs. Nigeria (Lang Park, Brisbane)
• Monday, July 31
  • 6 a.m. — Canada vs. Australia (Lang Park, Brisbane)
  • 6 a.m. — Ireland vs. Nigeria (Melbourne Rectangular)

Group C: Spain, Costa Rica, Zambia, Japan

• Friday, July 21
  • 3:30 a.m. — Spain vs. Costa Rica (Wellington Regional)
• Saturday, July 22
  • 3 a.m. — Zambia vs. Japan (Waikato, Hamilton)
• Wednesday, July 26
  • 1 a.m. — Japan vs. Costa Rica (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)
  • 3:30 a.m. — Spain vs. Zambia (Eden Park, Auckland)
• Monday, July 31
  • 3 a.m. — Japan vs. Spain – (Wellington Regional)
  • 3 a.m. — Costa Rica vs. Zambia (Waikato, Hamilton)

Group D: England, Denmark, China, Haiti

• Saturday, July 22
  • 5:30 a.m. — England vs. Haiti (Lang Park, Brisbane)
  • 8 a.m. — Denmark vs. China (Perth Rectangular)
• Friday, July 28
  • 4:30 a.m. — England vs. Denmark (Sydney Football Stadium)
  • 7 a.m. — China vs. Haiti (Hindmarsh, Adelaide)
• Tuesday, Aug. 1
  • 7 a.m. — China vs. England (Hindmarsh, Adelaide)
  • 7 a.m. — Haiti vs. Denmark (Perth Rectangular)

Group E: USA, Netherlands, Portugal, Vietnam

• Friday, July 21
  • 9 p.m. — United States vs. Vietnam (Eden Park, Auckland)
• Sunday, July 23
  • 3:30 a.m. — Netherlands vs. Portugal (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)
• Wednesday, July 26
  • 9 p.m. — United States vs. Netherlands (Wellington Regional)
• Thursday, July 27
  • 3:30 a.m. — Portugal vs. Vietnam (Waikato, Hamilton)
• Tuesday, Aug. 1
  • 3 a.m. — Portugal vs. United States (Eden Park, Auckland)
  • 3 a.m. — Vietnam vs. Netherlands (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)

Group F: France, Jamaica, Brazil, Group C playoff winner

• Sunday, July 23
  • 6 a.m. — France vs. Jamaica (Sydney Football Stadium)
• Monday, July 24
  • 7 a.m. — Brazil vs. Panama (Hindmarsh, Adelaide)
• Saturday, July 29
  • 6 a.m. — France vs. Brazil (Lang Park, Brisbane)
  • 8:30 a.m. — Panama vs. Jamaica (Perth Rectangular)
• Wednesday, Aug. 2
  • 6 a.m. — Panama vs. France (Sydney Football Stadium)
  • 6 a.m. — Jamaica vs. Brazil (Melbourne Rectangular)

Group G: Sweden, South Africa, Italy, Argentina

• Sunday, July 23
  • 1 a.m. — Sweden vs. South Africa (Wellington Regional)
• Monday, July 24
  • 2 a.m. — Italy vs. Argentina (Eden Park, Auckland)
• Friday, July 28
  • 8 p.m. — Argentina vs. South Africa (Forsyth Barr, Dunedin)
• Saturday, July 29
  • 3:30 a.m. — Sweden vs. Italy (Wellington Regional)
• Wednesday, Aug. 2
  • 3 a.m. — Argentina vs. Sweden (Waikato, Hamilton)
  • 3 a.m. — South Africa vs. Italy – (Wellington Regional)

Group H: Germany, Morocco, Colombia, South Korea

• Monday, July 24
  • 4:30 a.m. — Germany vs. Morocco (Melbourne Rectangular)
  • 10 p.m. — Colombia vs. South Korea (Sydney Football Stadium)
• Sunday, July 30
  • 12:30 a.m. — South Korea vs. Morocco (Hindmarsh, Adelaide)
  • 5:30 a.m. — Germany vs. Colombia (Sydney Football Stadium)
• Thursday, Aug. 3
  • 6 a.m. — South Korea vs. Germany (Lang Park, Brisbane)
  • 6 a.m. — Morocco vs. Colombia (Perth Rectangular)

Round of 16

• Saturday, Aug. 5
  • 1 a.m. — Group A winner vs. Group C runner-up
  • 4 a.m. — Group C winner vs. Group A runner-up
  • 10 p.m. — Group E winner vs. Group G runner-up
• Sunday, Aug. 6
  • 5 a.m. — Group G winner vs. Group E runner-up
• Monday, Aug. 7
  • 3:30 a.m. — Group D winner vs. Group B runner-up
  • 6:30 a.m. — Group B winner vs. Group D runner-up
• Tuesday, Aug. 8
  • 4 a.m. — Group H winner vs. Group F runner-up
  • 7 a.m. — Group F winner vs. Group H runner-up

Quarterfinals

• Thursday, Aug. 10
  • 9 p.m. — Round of 16 winners
• Friday, Aug. 11
  • 3:30 a.m — Round of 16 winners
• Saturday, Aug. 12
  • 3 a.m. — Round of 16 winners
  • 6:30 a.m. — Round of 16 winners

Semifinals

• Tuesday, Aug. 15
  • 4 a.m. — Quarterfinal winners
• Wednesday, Aug. 16
  • 6 a.m. — Quarterfinal winners

Third-place match

• Saturday, Aug. 19
  • 4 a.m. — Semifinal losers

Championship match

• Sunday, Aug. 20
  • 6 a.m. — Semifinal winners

The 2025 SheBelieves Cup field is officially set, as the world No. 1 USWNT's path to a sixth-straight victory in the annual tournament will feature matchups with 2024 Olympians No. 7 Japan, No. 15 Australia, and No. 21 Colombia.

After the Paris Olympic Games forced an abbreviated four-match, two-day format in 2024, this 10th edition will return to the tournament's original setup of three double-headers in February. Round-robin play will again determine the Cup champion via accumulated points, with goal differential serving as tiebreaker.

The 2025 tournament will kick off at Houston's Shell Energy Stadium on February 20th. The quartet will then battle at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on the 23rd before wrapping up the Cup at San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium on the 26th.

A history of USWNT SheBelieves dominance

While Australia and Colombia will make their SheBelieves Cup debuts, the 2025 competition will be Japan's third straight trip and fifth overall appearance in the US-hosted tournament.

Other than France's 2017 victory and England's 2019 title, the USWNT has won all other iterations for a total of seven trophies.

That streak, plus their astounding 71-2-15 combined all-time record against the three visitors — marred only by single 1-0 losses to Japan in 2012 and Australia in 2018 — make the US heavily favored to win an eighth SheBelieves Cup.

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World-class contenders square off for SheBelieves

That said, it won't be easy, as every 2025 contender poses a challenge. Each has already played the USA this year, starting when Colombia fell 3-0 to the States in their Concacaf W Gold Cup quarterfinal in March.

Las Cafeteras didn't have to face the eventual gold medalists during the 2024 Olympics, unlike Australia and Japan. The USWNT knocked the Matildas out of the Paris tournament with a 2-1 win in group play, then narrowly escaped a tough Nadeshiko side in a 1-0 overtime quarterfinal thriller.

All three visiting teams will be gunning for a redemption win over the US come February. That high-stakes competition is something US head coach Emma Hayes welcomes.

"This will be my first SheBelieves Cup, but I’ve followed the tournament, and it always produces close games between top teams," the US boss said in Wednesday’s announcement.

"All four of these teams were in the last World Cup and Olympics, and all are in the building process to qualify for the next World Cup, so to get three games against talented teams and players in a format that replicates group play at a world championship is valuable in our process. All the games will be great tests for the teams and fun for all the fans."

The full 2025 SheBelieves Cup schedule for the USWNT

• Thursday, February 20th (Shell Energy Stadium, Houston, Texas)
  • Japan vs. Australia, 5 PM ET
  • USWNT vs. Colombia, 8 PM ET
• Sunday, February 23rd (State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona)
  • Colombia vs. Japan, 2 PM ET
  • USWNT vs. Australia, 5 PM ET
• Wednesday, February 26th (Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego, California)
  • Australia vs. Colombia, 7:30 PM ET
  • USWNT vs. Japan, 10:30 PM ET

How to watch the USWNT at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup

Tickets for all 2025 SheBelieves Cup dates and locations are currently available online.

For those unable to make the trip, all USWNT matches will air live on TBS, with the three non-US games will be available to stream on Max.

At least two of the nation's best NCAA basketball teams will see their undefeated 2024/25 campaigns end this weekend, when a pair of cutthroat college clashes tests the limits of four championship contenders.

First, No. 6 Notre Dame will visit No. 3 USC on Saturday, before No. 1 South Carolina takes on the Trojans’ crosstown rival No. 5 UCLA on Sunday.

Saturday's NCAA showdown features superstar sophomores

All eyes will be on preseason All-American sophomore guards JuJu Watkins and Hannah Hidalgo when the Irish contend with their season's first ranked opponent on Saturday.

Already a phenom, Watkins became the fastest Trojan to 1,000 career points last Friday — and she did it by a mile. The previous record-holder, legend Cheryl Miller, needed 48 games to hit the same mark.

As for Hidalgo, she's already hit the century mark across Notre Dame’s four matchups to average 25 points per game — the fifth-best offensive rate in the country.

The Irish's other secret weapon, guard Olivia Miles, is also back, returning from her February 2023 ACL tear with a vengeance in the Irish's season opener. Already averaging 18.3 points per game, Miles has also banked 27 assists over Notre Dame's four games — more than twice that of any of her teammates.

Between Hildago and Miles, plus ND's admittedly lopsided matchups so far, the South Bend squad has blasted their opponents by a 42.5-point average scoring margin this season.

It's a similar story for USC, who have been on a tear since their narrow 68-66 season-opening win over then-No. 20 Ole Miss. The Trojans thrashed their next three opponents by outscoring them by a gobsmacking average of 57 points.

The Trojans will need all that offense, plus the stylings of Watkins and All-American forward Kiki Iriafen, to handle the Irish on Saturday. Notre Dame holds the 8-2 all-time series advantage between the two teams, though they haven't squared off since 2011. Should USC emerge victorious, it will be their first win over the Irish since 2006.

Sunday puts powerhouses in the paint

The subsequent Sunday battle between UCLA and South Carolina — who set a program-record 43-game win streak on Wednesday — will likely be decided in the paint, where both team's superstars thrive.

The Gamecocks' depth keeps their stat sheet fairly balanced, making junior forward Chloe Kitts’s team-leading rates in scoring and rebounding that much more impressive.

That said, her UCLA counterpart, junior center Lauren Betts, has been dominant. By averaging a double-double across the Bruins' four tilts with 21.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game, Betts is already sparking National Player of the Year commentary.

Both squads began their 2024/25 campaigns with tight wins, but while UCLA's came over then-No. 17 Louisville, South Carolina was nearly shocked by unranked Michigan. On the other hand, the Gamecocks are the only team to have handled a Top-10 opponent so far this season, confidently downing then-No. 9 NC State just six days after their near-disaster with the Wolverines.

Sunday's showdown kicks off a gauntlet of four ranked matchups in five games for South Carolina. Even though UCLA haven't defeated the Gamecocks this century, the Bruins are the biggest challenge to the reigning champions' undefeated streak on their 2024 docket.

Depending on which version of South Carolina shows up, a combination of the bigs and each team's overall consistency will likely determine Sunday's victor.

How to watch this weekend's Top-6 NCAA basketball games

Notre Dame and USC will tip off the weekend's matchups at 4 PM ET on Saturday, airing live on NBC.

On Sunday, FS1 will broadcast South Carolina vs. UCLA at 4 PM ET on Sunday.

On today's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins joins the chat from Kansas City, where Orlando Pride and Washington Spirit will kick off the 2024 NWSL Championship on Saturday.

Watkins breaks down the full Championship matchup, from each team's path to the Final to the tactics to expect on Saturday's pitch and everything in between. She also dishes on key players to watch — including Pride star Barbra Banda and Spirit attacker Trinity Rodman — and some of the recent injuries keeping star athletes on the sidelines.

Later, Watkins congratulates UConn head coach Geno Auriemma on Wednesday's record-breaking 1,217th victory — one that made saw him pass retired Stanford boss Tara VanDerveer to become the winningest college basketball coach in NCAA history.

The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.

Subscribe to The Late Sub to never miss an episode.

The NWSL is continuing to roll out end-of-year awards this week, with the league's top performers taking home honors in the lead-up to the 2024 Championship.

Joining Rookie of the Year (ROTY) Croix Bethune and Golden Boot winner Temwa Chawinga in earning 2024 hardware is Gotham's Ann-Katrin Berger. The German international subsequently became the first European player to win Goalkeeper of the Year on Wednesday, snagging the award in her first NWSL season.

In her 22 matches, Berger logged eight clean sheets. She conceded a league-low 16 goals and posted a save percentage above 80%.

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Hines wins Coach of the Year

Also earning a trophy is Orlando Pride boss Seb Hines, who became the 2024 Coach of the Year​ this week.

A former assistant, Hines was​ elevated to interim coach in June 2022 after Orlando placed former head coach Amanda Cromwell​ on administrative leave. Now in his second full year as manager, Hines is already Orlando's winningest coach with a career record of 31-30-12.

After steering his team to a record 24-match unbeaten streak and first-ever NWSL Shield win, Hines ended the regular season with an overall record of 18-2-6 en route to the club's first playoff berth since 2017. Adding onto that 2024 campaign, Hines led the Pride to their first-ever postseason wins.

Orlando also set NWSL records with the most single-season points (60), victories (18), and the longest win streak (eight matches) under Hines.

The 36-year-old beat out Kansas City's Vlatko Andonovski and Gotham's 2023 winner Juan Carlos Amorós to take this year's honor.

Three more NWSL end-of-season awards await

Lastly, the final trio of 2024 NWSL awards will drop in the upcoming days, including Defender of the Year, Midfielder of the Year, and MVP. As fans await those announcements, more than a few finalists are gearing up to play in Saturday's Championship.

Pride defenders Emily Sams, Kylie Strom, and Spirit center back Tara McKeown are up for Defender of the Year. Meanwhile, Washington's Rookie of the Year Bethune could double-down as Midfielder of the Year.

On top of that, three of the NWSL's MVP candidates — Spirit winger Trinity Rodman and Orlando attackers Marta and Barbra Banda — will feature on the championship pitch.