Biggest ever FIFA Women’s WC set for lift-off in Australia and NZ

AFP, Paris  :
The first-ever 32-team FIFA Women’s World Cup (WC) begins in Australia and New Zealand (NZ) on July 20, with the United States aiming to win a third consecutive title in a landmark month for the women’s game.
It has been a rapid expansion for a tournament that featured just 16 teams in 2011 in Germany and 24 sides in France four years ago, when the USA retained the trophy.
That reflects a dramatic rise in interest in women’s football over the last decade, beyond its traditional heartland of the United States, and a swarm of European sides will be aiming to snatch their title this year.
Meanwhile Australia, led by the brilliant Sam Kerr, will hope to make the most of home advantage and go all the way to the final in Sydney on August 20.
This World Cup is not just bigger in terms of the number of competing nations.
FIFA has tripled the prize money on offer compared to 2019, and the total pot which also covers compensation for clubs releasing players is up from $50 million four years ago to $152 million now.
It is a huge rise on the $15 million offered in 2015, and confirmation that it is boom time for women’s football, as huge crowds at club and international matches in Europe in particular recently attest.