The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup will take place in Canada next year, and despite some of the recent rancor over the field surfaces to be used, the qualifiers are proceeding as planned.
Asia's qualifiers have already been deterimined, including Australia, China, Japan, Korea Republic and Thailand. Europe has seen England, France, Germany, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland qualify, with one more spot to be determined later this month via playoff. South America will send Brazil and Colombia, while Ecuador advanced to a playoff with the still-to-be-determined fourth-place team in CONCACAF. Africa's qualifying tournament is under way in Namibia with three spots in the offing, and Oceania will decide its lone qualifier in a tournament in Papua New Guinea later this month.
Canada qualified automatically as the host nation.
The final round of CONCACAF qualifying kicks off on Wednesday, including the opening match for the US women's national team.
THE SET UP
WWC qualification comes out of the CONCACAF Women's Championship. The tournament is being held this month at venues around the United States:
- Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kansas
- Toyota Park, Bridgeview, Illinois
- RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.
- PPL Park, Chester, Pennsylvania
Eight nations will compete in a group stage, followed by the semifinals, the third-place match and the final. They will be competing for three automatic spots in the WWC, plus one spot in a qualification playoff.
Group A
- Guatemala
- Haiti
- Trinidad & Tobago
- United States
Group B
- Costa Rica
- Jamaica
- Martinique
- Mexico
WHO QUALIFIES
The top two finishers in each group will move on to the semifinals. The two finalists and the winner of the third-place match will then qualify directly for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada. The fourth-place team will go into a two-leg playoff against the third-place finisher in South America; this year, that country is Ecuador.
SCHEDULE
Date |
Match |
Time (ET) |
Venue |
Oct. 15 |
Guatemala vs. Haiti |
6 p.m. |
Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan. |
USA vs. Trinidad & Tobago |
8:30 p.m. |
Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan. |
|
Oct. 16 |
Jamaica vs. Martinique |
6 p.m. |
Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan. |
Costa Rica vs. Mexico |
8:30 p.m. |
Sporting Park; Kansas City, Kan. |
|
Oct. 17 |
Haiti vs. Trinidad & Tobago |
6:30 p.m. |
Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill. |
USA vs. Guatemala |
9 p.m. |
Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill. |
|
Oct. 18 |
Costa Rica vs. Jamaica |
4 p.m. |
Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill. |
Martinique vs. Mexico |
6:30 p.m. |
Toyota Park; Bridgeview, Ill. |
|
Oct. 20 |
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Guatemala |
5 p.m. |
RFK Stadium; Washington, D.C. |
USA vs. Haiti |
7:30 p.m. |
RFK Stadium; Washington, D.C. |
|
Oct. 21 |
Martinique vs. Costa Rica |
5 p.m. |
RFK Stadium; Washington, D.C. |
Mexico vs. Jamaica |
7:30 p.m. |
RFK Stadium; Washington, D.C. |
|
Oct. 24 |
1st A vs. 2nd B |
4:30 p.m. |
PPL Park; Chester, Pa. |
1st B vs. 2nd A |
7:30 p.m. |
PPL Park; Chester, Pa. |
|
Oct. 26 |
Third-Place Match |
3 p.m. |
PPL Park; Chester, Pa. |
Championship |
6 p.m. |
PPL Park; Chester, Pa. |
TV INFO
All matches will be televised on FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2 or FOX Soccer Plus, and will also be available via FOX Sports GO, FOX Soccer 2GO and FOXSportsGO.com.
