England draw Denmark, China and playoff winners

England were drawn into Group D alongside Denmark, China and a playoff winner for the 2023 Women’s World Cup draw in Auckland on Saturday.

The European champions will start their campaign in Brisbane on July 22, but will not know the identity of their first rival until the February Intercontinental Playoffs decide the remaining three participants in the expanded 32-team tournament.

Related: Matilda “still tries to figure things out” as the World Cup looms, says Carli Lloyd

Sarina Wiegman’s team will then head to Sydney to face Denmark on July 28 and then Adelaide to face China on August 1, when it begins its race to knock the two-time defending champions, the United States, off the perch.

England avoided an early meeting with the likes of runners-up of 2019 Holland, who will play a rematch of the final one against the United States of America, this time in Wellington on July 27th. Both teams are in Group E, which also includes newcomers Vietnam and another playoff winner.

Co-host Australiaalready included in Group B, they face their most difficult task against the Olympic gold medals in office Canadaagainst whom they have lost twice in a recent friendly series, and will also meet the republic of Irelandwho qualified for the first time, e Nigeria.

Comrades co-hosts New Zelandalready established in Group A, they start their campaign against Norway at Eden Park and will also play in the Philippines and Switzerland. Francequarter-finals of 2019 at the home tournament, they are in Group F along with Jamaica, Brazil and another playoff winner yet to be determined.

Spainstruggling with a mutiny of the players against their manager, Jorge Vilda, they are in Group C with Costa Rica, Zambia and Japan. SwedenSouth Africa, Italy and Argentina make up Group G with Germany, Morocco, Colombia and South Korea together in Group H.

England are in a fantastic position to improve their 2019 semi-final, at the height of their European home triumph and after beating the United States 2-1 in a friendly at Wembley Stadium earlier this month.

“I think we can take over the world,” said Ian Wright, who was there to help with the official ball drawing business. “Champions of Europe in our courtyard. The pressure they were under to produce, they did. We have a target on our back now. People want to beat us. That’s what happens when you are a good team. We have shown that we can beat the best, recently we have beaten the best. “

Also present were two-time American World Cup winner Carli Lloyd, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Australian Sports Minister Anika Wells, Fifa General Secretary Fatma Samoura and President Gianni Infantino, who stated that “Fifa is the official supplier of happiness”.

Hours earlier, at the conclusion of Saturday’s half-yearly FIFA council meeting, Infantino criticized broadcasters hoping to broadcast the World Cup for offering up to “100 times cheaper” than the male equivalent.

“When broadcasters – often public, but also private broadcasters – offer us 100 times less for the Women’s World Cup than the Men’s World Cup, even more than 100 times on some occasions, it’s not acceptable,” said Infantino, who added that the tournament would cost FIFA around $ 400 million. “We will not accept it.”

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