Last year was a historic year for women’s football and it doesn’t look like letting up in 2024. From playing the final for the first time to Chelsea hosting the World Cup as they bid farewell, here are seven things to watch out for in the coming months: to their legendary six-time Women’s Super League winner.
Olympic championship is at the door
The most important tournament of the year is the women’s football competition in Paris 2024. Sixteen teams will compete for gold medals in the tournament, which will take place between July 24 and August 10. Winner Canada qualified along with the USA, Colombia, Brazil and hosts France, but there are still 11 places left. The Nations League finals featuring the Netherlands, Spain and Germany will decide the remaining two UEFA places. Australia and Japan are the favorites to take the two places in Asia in February, while Samoa will host the final round of Oceania qualifiers (single place) in the same month. There are also two places to be determined for African countries in April.
Who will make history in the Nations League?
The First Nations League will conclude in February with four teams competing for the championship. Following a stunning completion of the group stage last month, Spain and France will host the Netherlands and Germany respectively as they look to secure a place in the final. The Dutch significantly edged England on goal difference to secure their progression, while Germany edged Denmark, France eased into Group A2 and Spain condemned Sweden to miss out on Olympic football for the first time. As mentioned above, the final two European venues for Paris 2024 will be determined when the tournament concludes on February 28.
Opening of the Concacaf W Gold Cup
More history will be made in February and March as the USA holds its first W Gold Cup. Canada will join the host team as Olympic play-off winners, while Costa Rica and Mexico have qualified for Concacaf. Panama will also participate after placing first in the qualifying group, which also includes Jamaica and Guatemala; Jamaica were left without many first team players following a well-publicised dispute with their federation. In addition, the top four finishers of the 2022 Copa América (Brazil, Colombia, Argentina and Paraguay) will be included, while the remaining three Concacaf places will be confirmed with three single-game play-offs to be played in Carson on February 17.
Will there be a new European club champion?
Bilbao will take center stage when the 23rd Women’s Champions League concludes in May, but there is still a lot of football to be played. The group stage will end at the end of January and so far only Barcelona and Lyon have advanced to the quarter-finals. Chelsea have put themselves in a good position in their pursuit of the only trophy that has eluded Emma Hayes during her decade-plus tenure at the club. Group C, meanwhile, is set to be the team to watch with just three points between the four contenders (Ajax, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Roma).
Euro 2025 finalists will be announced
Following the conclusion of the Nations League, European qualifiers will begin in April as teams look to secure a place in Euro 2025. Despite relegation to the B League, Switzerland claim automatic host status and will automatically qualify for the top two of each group. In the A League. Two rounds of playoffs will determine the final seven nations. After a strong Nations League campaign, the Republic of Ireland are hoping to reach their first European Championship but Scotland and Wales face a tough task. Meanwhile, brave teams Sweden and Norway will have to qualify for the play-offs in February, as will Northern Ireland, as they race to secure the best possible position to start qualifying.
The host of the World Cup will be announced
While the next two countries to host the men’s World Cup have already been decided, FIFA has strangely yet to confirm the location of the 2027 women’s tournament. The tender process was launched last year and the host is expected to be announced at the FIFA congress in May. There are three bids in contention following South Africa’s withdrawal. In addition to the USA and Mexico, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands also submitted a joint application. Brazil also threw its name into the hat.
Hayes takes charge of USWNT
Chelsea were heartbroken in October when it was announced that Hayes would be leaving for new venues at the end of the 2023-24 season. Shortly thereafter, it was confirmed that she would be the next manager of the US women’s national team. It will be a baptism of fire for the highly acclaimed coach, who will lead the USWNT to the Olympics just weeks after the end of the Women’s Super League. Reversing the team’s declining fortunes will not be an easy task, but it will certainly be a challenge that a coach of his caliber will enjoy.
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