FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023: Potential record-breaking feats await
The FIFA World Cup is set to kick off on the 20th of July! Let’s take a look at some potential individual and team records that could be broken during the tournament:
Individual Records
Vanina Correa from Argentina has the opportunity to break the record for the oldest goalkeeper in the Women’s World Cup. If she plays as expected, she will surpass Meg from Brazil, who was 39 years and 159 days old when Brazil faced Germany in 1995. Correa will turn 40 in August.
Casey Phair from South Korea could become the youngest player to ever participate in the Women’s World Cup. If she plays as scheduled, she will break Ifeanyi Chiejine’s record from Nigeria, who was 16 years and 35 days old when Nigeria played against South Korea in 1999. Phair turned 16 at the end of June and will be 16 years and 27 days old on the 25th of July, which is the first scheduled match for South Korea in this year’s World Cup against Morocco.
Marta from Brazil and Christine Sinclair from Canada have the opportunity to extend their record as the players, regardless of gender, who have scored in the most World Cup tournaments. Both have scored in five tournaments so far.
Marta from Brazil also has the chance to extend her record as the player with the most individual goals scored in the World Cup. If she scores in 2023, she will have a total of 18 goals, with her last one being a penalty against Italy in 2019, leading to a 1-0 win for Brazil.
Christine Sinclair from Canada will extend her record as the captain who has played in the most World Cup tournaments, including the 2023 edition, which will be her fifth.
Hege Riise, the head coach of Norway, could become the first individual to win the Women’s World Cup as both a player and a coach. Riise won the player of the year “Golden Ball” award in 1995 and is coaching Norway in 2023.
Six players are currently tied for the most appearances in a World Cup Final, with three appearances each. This record could be extended by Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe if they play for the USA in this year’s final.
Megan Rapinoe from the USA or Marta from Brazil could become the first player to win the player of the year “Golden Ball” trophy twice if either of them wins the award in 2023. Rapinoe won in 2019, and Marta won in 2007.
Megan Rapinoe from the USA, Alex Morgan from the USA, or Marta from Brazil could become the first player to be the top scorer at the Women’s World Cup twice if one of them achieves this feat in 2023. Rapinoe and Morgan tied for the “top scorer” title in 2019, while Marta was the top scorer in 2007.
Onome Ebi from Nigeria or Christine Sinclair from Canada have the opportunity to extend their record as the players with the most matches lost in the Women’s World Cup. Both of them have lost 10 matches so far. They are currently tied with Florence Omagbemi from Nigeria, who is not playing this year.
If any player scores 11 goals, they would break the record currently held by Michelle Akers from the USA for the most goals scored during a single tournament. Akers scored 10 times during the 1991 Women’s World Cup.
If any player scores 6 goals, they would break the record for the most goals scored in a single match, currently held by Michelle Akers from the USA and Alex Morgan from the USA, who both scored 5 goals. Akers achieved this feat in 1991 against Taipei, while Morgan did so against Thailand in 2019.
Any of the older players could break Formiga’s record for the oldest goalscorer, as Formiga from Brazil was 37 when she scored.
Team Records
USA
The USA team could extend their record as the country with the most World Cup wins, currently standing at 4 victories (1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019).
The USA has the opportunity to break their tie with Germany as the country that has won the most World Cups in a row. Germany had two consecutive wins in 2003 and 2007, while the USA matched them with their consecutive wins in 2015 and 2019.
The USA could also break their tie with Germany as the defending champion with the most wins in the following year. Both Germany and the USA defended their titles once, and the USA has the chance to defend their title for the second time in 2023.
The USA could join Germany as the only defending champion to not advance past the quarter-finals.
The USA has the chance to extend their record for the most goals scored in a single tournament. If they score 27 or more goals in 2023, they will surpass their own record of 26 goals set in 2019, breaking their tie with Germany.
If the USA ends up winning the bronze medal for the fourth time, they would break their tie with Sweden, who currently holds the record for the most bronze medals (3).
Depending on their placement, the USA could extend their current records for the most finishes in the top 2 (5 times), top 3 (8 times), top 4 (8 times), and top 8 (8 times).
The USA has the opportunity to extend their record for the total number of wins (40) as well as the most goals scored (138).
The USA could also extend their record for the most consecutive wins (12 wins since the 2015 match against Nigeria) and most consecutive matches without a loss (17 wins/draws since the 2011 match against Brazil) in the World Cup.
Australia & New Zealand
Australia or New Zealand could become only the second team ever to win the Women’s World Cup as the host country. The USA is the only team that has achieved this feat, winning the tournament in 1999 when they hosted.
Australia or New Zealand could join China (1991, 2007), Sweden (1995), Germany (2011), Canada (2015), and France (2019) as the hosts with the worst finishes. None of these teams advanced past the quarterfinals in their respective hosting years.
After playing 5 times, New Zealand could make it to the top 8 for the first time in their history.
Sweden
Sweden could join the USA as the only team to ever win all three medals – bronze, silver, and gold. The USA has won 4 golds, 1 silver, and 3 bronze medals, while Sweden has won 3 bronze medals and 1 silver medal but has yet to win the gold.
If Sweden ends up winning the bronze medal for the fourth time, they would break their tie with the USA as the team with the most bronze medals (3).
Netherlands
If the Netherlands wins, they would join Norway and the USA as the only defending runner-ups to win the following Women’s World Cup.
Nigeria
After playing 8 times, Nigeria could make it to the top 4 for the first time in their history.
Nigeria could extend their record for the total number of losses (19) as well as the most goals conceded (63).
Norway
If Norway wins, they would break the USA’s record for the longest gap between successive titles, as it has been 28 years since Norway last won in 1995.
Italy
Italy currently holds the record for the longest gap between appearances in the top 8. They finished 6th in the inaugural Women’s World Cup but have not made it into the top 8 since then. If they miss out again, they will extend their record to a 31-year gap.
China
China could extend their record for the most draws in the Women’s World Cup, currently standing at 7.
Brazil
Brazil could extend their record for the most cautions in the history of the Women’s World Cup, with a total of 55.
Overall Records
If any of the following teams finish as runners-up, it would mark the first time ever that a country has placed second in the Women’s World Cup for a second time: USA, Germany, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Brazil, China, Netherlands.
Currently, the USA and Germany are tied for being the top-scoring teams in the most World Cups, with three wins each. Either team has the opportunity to break the tie and become the sole record holder.
There are eight teams debuting at this year’s Women’s World Cup: Philippines, Vietnam, Morocco, Zambia, Panama, Haiti, Portugal, and the Republic of Ireland. Any of these teams could join the USA as the only team to win during their debut year, considering that the USA won in the inaugural tournament.
Any of the following countries that have previously debuted in the Women’s World Cup could win their first-ever match: Argentina, Costa Rica, Jamaica, South Africa, New Zealand.
This year’s World Cup has the potential to become the most attended women’s sporting event ever, judging from ticket sales. If attendance surpasses the record held by the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France, which was attended by 1.131 million people, it would mark a new milestone.
Past Records Worth Mentioning
The oldest player ever to play in the Women’s World Cup is Formiga from Brazil, who was 41 years and 112 days old.
The biggest margin of victory record belongs to the USA, who won 13-0 against Thailand in the 2019 World Cup.
The most own goals scored in a match is two, achieved by Angie Ponce from Ecuador in a match against Switzerland in 2015.
The fastest goal ever scored was by Lena Videkull from Sweden, who scored after 30 seconds in a match against Japan in 1991.
Kristine Lilly from the USA holds the record for the most matches won, with 24 victories. Sun Wen from China has the most draws, with 5 matches ending in a draw.
Formiga from Brazil holds the record for the most tournaments played, with a total of 7.
These records have been collected from the official FIFA website and verified through various sources.
We eagerly await the start of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the potential breaking of these remarkable records.
Source: ActionNetwork.com
Follow the Neptune Prime channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va74ZvU2v1IqKByXoX3d
Do you have breaking news, interview request, opinion, suggestion, or want your event covered? Email us at neptuneprime2233@gmail.com
