USA and Mexico will bid for 2027 Women's World Cup
- by Paul Kennedy @pkedit, Apr 20, 2023
The USA and Mexico now aim to also host the 2027 Women's World Cup.
Two days before the deadline to submit expressions of interest, U.S. Soccer and the Mexican soccer federation informed FIFA they intend to bid to co-host the 2027 finals.
Rodrigo Ares de Parga (Executive National Teams Director) and Cindy Parlow (US Soccer President) had an exchange during tonight's matchup in Glendale, AZ. pic.twitter.com/w8kIMLTTJz
— Mexican National Team (@miseleccionmxEN) April 20, 2023
The USA hosted the 1999 and 2003 Women's World Cups, the latter as a last-minute replacement for China. The tournament returned to North America in 2015 when Canada hosted.
Other countries that have announced plans to bid are Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany in a joint bid, Brazil and South Africa.
As FIFA moves to get the Women's World Cup out from under the shadow of the men's tournament and commercialize women's soccer, the lure of huge crowds and eager sponsors (plus big ratings for prime-time coverage) makes the USA-Mexico bid the heavy favorite.
“The United States has always been a global leader for the women’s game, and we would be honored to co-host the world’s premier event for women’s soccer along with Mexico,” said U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone, who played the USA’s 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup championship team. “Hosting the 2027 Women’s World Cup provides us an incredible opportunity to cap off two historic years of World Cup soccer in the Concacaf region, helping us continue to grow the game among our confederation associations. A record six teams from Concacaf will play in the Women’s World Cup this summer, and the United States and Mexico want to continue to push the envelope for the development of women’s soccer across the entire region.”
Mexico is not one of the six Concacaf entrants in the 2023 World Cup, but Liga MX Femenil has grown since its launch, drawing big crowds for its Apertura and Clausura playoffs for games involving Tigres, Monterrey and Club America.
The size of the Women’s World Cup has grown from 12 teams in 1991 to 16 in 1999 and 24 in 2015 and 32 in 2023 when Australia and New Zealand will be the first co-hosts.
Key Dates:
April 21, 2023. Deadline for federations to submit their expressions of interest.
May 19, 2023. Deadline for federations to confirm their interest.
August 2023. Bid workshop and observer program (at Women's World Cup).
Dec. 8, 2023. Deadline for federations to submit their bids.
February 2024. On-site inspection visits to bidding countries
May 2024. Publication of FIFA’s bid valuation report.
Q2 2024. *Designation of up to three bids by the FIFA Council.
May 17, 2024. Selection of host(s) by the FIFA Congress.
*New process.
"Mexico is not one of the six Concacaf entrants in the 2023 World Cup". Seriously? What is going on with the FMF?
Mexico flopped in the final round of the qualifying tournament. Reportedly there were a lot or problems between the players and the coach. It's a pity becuase they have a strong team and have gotten very good results both before and since qualification, beating many teams that have qualified.