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The FIFA Women’s Soccer World Cup’s evolution is a certain sign that women’s soccer is catching up! More and more people watch, more sponsors back the event, and more teams are involved.
Let’s look at the stats and trends to find out more.
The inaugural 1991 was branded as the 1st FIFA World Championship for Women’s Football for the M&M’s Cup, but the name changed after. We used data from all editions. The tournament became known as the Women’s World Cup from 1995 onwards, following the success of the inaugural 1991 soccer event.
TV audiences have risen from just a few million in 1991, right up to around 1.12 billion for the 2019 tournament in France, according to official FIFA data sources.
“If we can hit two billion people, that’s really doubling the audience. We think that’s achievable.”
– Football Australian CEO James Johnson, via Reuters news agency
The impressive attendance stats provide further proof that people are interested.
The numbers are inconsistent because of factors like stadium capacity and host nation, but the interest in the matches is obvious.
Before the 2023 Soccer World Cup, the women’s soccer championship was always bundled with the quadrennial men’s event, using the same sponsors. This changes for the upcoming tournament, with a combination of unique and shared sponsors
This has affected prize money for obvious reasons. 2023 will be the edition with the highest prize pool so far.
And here’s how this money will be distributed among the participating teams.
Based upon reports via Sky Sports, FIFA President Gianni Infantino has promised equal prize money for women by 2027, matching the men’s 2026 World Cup funding. This means only one thing – the pool will only grow!
The World Cup mirrors the men’s events, starting with an initial group phase, followed by knockout stages. Here’s what this format looked like throughout the years.
The top 2 teams from each group qualify for the knockout stage, featuring the Round of 16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, concluding with the Third-Place Playoff and Final.
Qualification for the first FIFA Women’s World Cup featured 48 teams from all 6 FIFA confederations, competing for 12 places at the 1991 tournament.
Qualification for the 2023 FIFA WWC involved 172 teams from the 6 confederations competing for 32 places in the tournament’s final stage.
Historical performances by players and teams are the bread and butter of the World Cup. Let’s take a look at athletes and nations that left a mark on the tournament.
American Soccer icon Kristine Lilly holds numerous World Cup records, and many believe she is the greatest player in the tournament’s history.
