The Women’s World Cup is upon us and it’s fair to say expectations that the Lionesses are destined to win the tournament have reached levels not seen since England’s men’s team headed to South Africa for the 2010 debacle.
Thirteen years on and the blokes still don’t have a trophy to boast about since 1966, while Serena Wiegman has already delivered the European Championship for the women.
Women’s World Cup betting activity is already hotting up as we prepare for this 64-game bonanza in Australia and New Zealand. But who will win tournament and how can you bet on Womens World Cup odds? Read on for our ultimate explainer…
How Women’s World Cup Works
The 2023 Women’s World Cup features 32 teams for the first time, split into eight groups of four. Group winners and runners-up progress to the last-16 and it’s a knockout stage right the way through to the final.
Games are split between host nations New Zealand and Australia. The host cities are:
Australia
- Adelaide
- Brisbane
- Melbourne
- Perth
- Sydney
New Zealand
- Auckland
- Dunedin
- Hamilton
- Wellington
Groups A, C, E and G play in New Zealand, while Groups B, D, F and H take place in Australia. It all kicks off on Thursday 20 July, with the final scheduled for Sunday 20 August.
Argentina, Costa Rica, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, USA, Vietnam and Zambia have their HQs in New Zealand.
See the Women’s World Cup 2023 fixtures, kick-off times and results here
England Women’s Path to the World Cup Final
England start the Women’s World Cup as second favourites behind USA to win the whole thing. They’re in Group D alongside Haiti, Denmark and China. They’re expected to win all three games, and their odds to beat Haiti are currently 1/80.
Top Group D and England would play Group B’s runners-up in Brisbane in the last-16. That’s likely to be Republic of Ireland or Canada. Here’s the prospective* England route to the final:
- Last 16 vs Ireland or Canada – 7 August in Brisbane
- Quarter-final vs Germany, France or Brazil – 12 August in Sydney
- Semi-final vs France, Brazil or Australia – 16 August in Sydney
- Final vs Spain or USA – 20 August in Sydney
Ireland Women’s Path to the World Cup Final
Republic of Ireland could well meet England as early as the last-16 if they were to finish second in Group B. They face a difficult group involving Nigeria, Canada and hosts Australia. It’s likely to come down to a face-off with Canada for second place.
Ireland start their campaign on 20 July against Australia in Sydney’s 82,500-seater Stadium Australia. If you want to bet on football then it’s worth knowing their odds below to cause an opening-day upset!
Were the Irish to finish second in Group B they would follow England’s prospective path to the final. However, top the group* and it looks a little different:
- Last 16 vs Denmark – 7 August in Sydney
- Quarter-final vs France or Brazil – 12 August in Brisbane
- Semi-final vs Germany or England – 16 August in Sydney
- Final vs Spain or USA – 20 August in Sydney
*all potential opponents based on seeding and likelihood of progression
Women’s World Cup Betting Tips
The spread of Women’s World Cup betting odds available to punters is exactly the same as with other tournaments, such as the Premier League and WSL. However, there’s always the added complication of extra time being possible in the knockout rounds, and penalties. What’s more, the quality standard between the top women’s teams and those ranked lower in the world is much greater than in the men’s game. It’s closer to the quality gap in men’s tennis, which is huge.
Therefore bettors need to be smarter with their wagers. Granted, there are some very banker bets here but no-one is going to risk £80 to earn £1 back in England’s clash with Haiti.
So we’ve come up with some smart Women’s World Cup betting tips for punters who want to squeeze out extra profit:
- Master the accas – Accumulators are going to play a big role in the women football betting markets this summer. The group stage has a lot of short-odds favourites, such as England to beat Haiti and USA to crush Vietnam. One potential answer to this is to lump all the favourites together into a big acca that pays out better odds.
- Look at injuries – England are second faovurites pre-tournament in the Women’s Football World Cup betting odds, but don’t have key players Beth Mead and Leah Williamson. Injuries have also affected Spain and the Netherlands. Keep an eye on the squads and think carefully about how absences affect the bigger teams.
- Follow Australia – Australia kick off their home World Cup against Republic of Ireland and all eyes will be on Sam Kerr. But this Aussie team is more than just one player and they’re a great bet to reach the final 5/1
- France, Brazil or Germany will bomb – France and Brazil will fight it out to top Group F, with the runner-up likely to face Germany in the last-16. That means we’re going to lose to one of the big hitters early. France look a great bet at 9/1 to win the whole thing, but could easily slip up against Brazil and then the Germans in Melbourne.
Check out these Women’s World Cup 2023 tips for more top picks
Women’s World Cup Top Goalscorer Betting
Women’s World Cup top goalscorer betting markets favourites are dominated by the big players from England, USA, France, Spain and Germany. Here are some early contenders for the Golden Boot gong:
- Alessia Russo – England
- Sam Kerr – Australia
- Alba Redondo – Spain
- Rachel Daly – England
- Alexia Putellas – Spain
- Alexandra Popp – Germany
- Jenni Hermoso – Spain
- Alex Morgan – USA
- Eugénie Le Sommer – France
- Lea Schüller – Germany
FAQs
When is the Women’s World Cup final?
The Women’s World Cup final takes place on Sunday 20 August in Sydney, Australia.
When does the Women’s World Cup start?
The Women’s World Cup starts on Thursday 20 July with New Zealand taking on Norway at 8am BST. After that, Australia face Republic of Ireland at 11am BST. England’s first game of the Women’s World Cup against Haiti kicks off at 10:30am BST on Saturday 22 July.
Where is the Women’s World Cup?
The Women’s World Cup is taking place across both Australia and New Zealand this summer. There are 64 games in total.
READ MORE
- Women’s World Cup Odds: Who are the favourites to win?
- England Women’s World Cup 2023 fixtures, kick-off times and results
- Women’s World Cup: 5 players to watch out for in Australia and New Zealand
- Ireland Women’s World Cup 2023 fixtures, kick-off times and results
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