Australia and New Zealand Host a Record Women’s World Cup

On 20 July 2023, the ninth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup commenced with New Zealand defeating Norway at Eden Park in Auckland. Jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, the event marked several structural milestones for international football. It was the first senior World Cup staged across multiple sovereign nations since 2002, as well as the first senior tournament held in Oceania or the Southern Hemisphere. Because Football Australia belongs to the Asian Football Confederation while New Zealand Football competes within the Oceania Football Confederation, it also represented the first FIFA tournament held across multiple confederations.

The 2023 tournament introduced an expanded format of 32 teams, increasing from the 24 nations that had competed in the 2015 and 2019 editions. To accommodate the eight groups of four and 64 total matches, organisers selected ten stadiums across nine host cities. As part of an effort to acknowledge Indigenous heritage, the tournament incorporated traditional place names alongside English titles in official branding, including Gadigal and Wangal for Sydney and Tamaki Makaurau for Auckland. Australian Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, and Maori flags were also displayed alongside national flags across tournament venues.