England defeats Australia to reach its first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup final.
England, ranked No. 4 in the FIFA rankings, defeated Australia, ranked No. 10 in the FIFA rankings, 3-1 on Saturday in the semifinals of the Australia-New Zealand Women’s World Cup 2023 at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia.
This is the first time England has reached the final of the Women’s World Cup, which has been held since 1991 and is in its ninth edition. England will play Spain in the final on May 20 at the same venue. Spain defeated Sweden in the semifinals the day before to reach the final.
This is the first time England has reached the Women’s World Cup final. Their previous best finish was third in the 2015 tournament.
After winning all three of their games and finishing first in Group D with wins over Haiti (1-0), Denmark (1-0), and China (6-1), England defeated Nigeria on penalties in the round of 16 and came from behind to beat Colombia 2-1 in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, they knocked off hosts Australia to win their first-ever title.
Meanwhile, Australia, the only Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member to make it through to the quarterfinals, will play Sweden for the third-place match on Sept. 19.
England took the lead in the 36th minute when Ella Toon headed home a low ball from Alessia Russo.
However, Australia equalized in the 18th minute of the second half through ‘Living Legend’ forward Sam Kerr. On the counter-attack, Kerr dribbled in from the defensive area before unleashing a thunderous mid-range shot that split the England goal. It was his 14th goal of the World Cup.
But Australia’s joy was short-lived. Eight minutes later, England’s Lauren Hemp burst into the penalty area after a long pass from the back and beat her 스포츠토토 opponent with a left-footed shot.
Australia fought back through Kerr, but England roared back in the 41st minute through Rousseau.
England were without striker Lauren James, who had three goals and three assists in the tournament, as he was sent off for stomping on an opposing defender’s buttocks in the round of 16 against Nigeria, serving a two-match suspension. Still, the replacements got on the scoresheet to beat Australia.