There was an endearing folksiness about Bettina Stark-Watzinger's tweet following the Germany team's exit.
“I really would have liked to see you win,” wrote the country's education minister. “Cheer up, we are nevertheless proud of you!”
Wie schade! Das war wirklich ein knappes Ding. Den Sieg hätte ich unseren @DFB_Frauen wirklich gegönnt. Kopf hoch, wir sind trotzdem stolz auf Euch! ??⚽️ #FIFAWWC #GERKOR https://t.co/7vhKXKOCOC
— Bettina Stark-Watzinger (@starkwatzinger) August 3, 2023
Such chirpiness amid the angst – probably part and parcel of the minister's portfolio.
“Some things are just not meant to be," said foreign minister Annalena Baerbock. "Chin up, dear DFB women.”
This exit will resound in the corridors of the football federation. In the previous eight World Cups, Germany reached at least the quarter-finals.
And that's exactly where they appeared to be heading after they began the tournament with a 6-0 thrashing of Morocco.
But that was so last month. Ten days on from that annihilation, Germany were on their way home and Morocco – who edged past Colombia 1-0 – were into the last-16.
That unexpected passage combined with South Africa and Nigeria's progress prompted a paean from Patrice Motsepe who heads the Confederation of African Football (CAF) which runs the game on the continent.
Praise
"The Super Falcons, the Atlas Lionesses and Banyana Banyana have made the people of Nigeria, Morocco and South Africa, as well as the people of the rest of the African continent, very proud with their outstanding performances and hard-earned victories," Motsepe enthused.
"The future of women’s football on the African continent is bright."
But to a certain extent the teams should be reaching the knockout stages. They all featured in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations last year and though none of the trio won their pool, they deserve credit for their belief especially Morocco.
On Monday, before hosts Australia face Denmark in Sydney, Nigeria's Super Falcons will take on the European champions England at Brisbane Stadium while on 6 August South Africa's Banyana Banyana will play the Netherlands at the Sydney Football Stadium.
That match will be followed by an intriguing clash between the defending champions the United States and Sweden.
"We could be going home," said Megan Rapinoe after the side scraped into the last-16 with a 0-0 draw with Portugal on 1 August.
"We have to keep perspective. I've never been at a tournament where you think you're doing amazing all the time," added the 38-year-old who won the title with the US in 2015 and 2019.
"There's always someone saying: 'You're not good enough. You're not playing well enough.' We're through to the next game and that's the most important thing. You know that's what it's really all about."
Truly sagacious especially when three of the world's top 10 teams – Germany, Canada and Brazil – have been dispatched.
Departure
Brazil's departure meant the end of the veteran striker Marta.
"Twenty years ago, nobody knew who Marta was at my first World Cup," she said – speaking in the third person. "Twenty years later, we have become a reference for many women all over the world, not only in football.
"The only old one in the team is me, most of the others are young girls with enormous talent, it's just the beginning for them.
"Marta ends here, there is no more World Cup for Marta."
At 37, she leaves as the tournament's most prolific scorer with 17 goals during her six World Cups.
Jamaica did for Marta with a 0-0 draw that took them from Group F into the knockout stages for the first time. Their clash with Colombia on 8 August at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium should be intriguing.
"I said if after the first game that we're here to shock the world," said Jamaica midfielder Drew Spence.
"And I think we've done that. The country is so small but look at what we've done. We've got out of one of the toughest groups. Everyone wrote us off but we're really proud of one another."
Morocco's clash with France at the Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide will end the last-16 action on Tuesday afternoon. France will go into the game as favourites .
France boss Hervé Renard vented his spleen after the 6-3 victory over Panama which secured their status as Group F winners.
"We were 5-1 up, with the game in the bag," said Renard. "You see this often in football. It was poor attitude from the girls for a few minutes that let them come back and score two goals.
"The devil is in the detail in games like this, and this shows the younger girls not to take anything for granted."
Dedication
Renard's counterpart at the helm of Morocco, Reynald Pedros, assured himself of everlasting royal patronage by dedicating qualification to the last-16 to King Mohammed VI.
"He supported us after the defeat to Germany," said the 51-year-old Frenchman. "We knew that he was behind us and gave us a lot of strength for the other games."
The king has also obtained a good boast. Morocco became the first Arab country to reach the last-16.
"It's absolutely brilliant," added Pedros who has been in charge of the national team since November 2022.
But outfoxing Renard on Tuesday would appear – on paper – to be beyond the Moroccans. France lie fifth in the Fifa world rankings – 67 places above Pedros's players who will go into the game as underdogs.
"I know the France team well," said Pedros. "It's a squad with lots of good players with lots of experience but if we show the same resolve and desire we can do something. It's the knockout stages from here," Pedros added. "Anything can happen."
Just the sort of stakes and spectacle the tournament needs.
[RFi]
KEY POINTS
- Several upcoming Women's World Cup matches feature former colonial powers playing against countries they colonised.
- In these games, France will face Morocco, South Africa will play the Netherlands and England will play Nigeria.
- The games have been labelled "coloniser derbies", "colonial derbies" or "decolonisation derbies".
A snapshot of France and Morocco's history
A Flourish data visualizationNouhaila is set to make football history wearing a hijab. But bans remain for some athletes
Uncomfortable LGBTIQ+ question at FIFA Women's World Cup pushes BBC to backtrack
Relations between the Netherlands and South Africa
Football is the 'world's game'. Why aren't all Women's World Cup matches on free-to-air TV?
England's colonisation of Nigeria
Linda thought cancer ended her football dreams. Now she's a star of the Women's World Cup
FIFA won't recognise them. So this team can only watch on during the Women's World Cup
The Federation of International Football Association confirmed on Friday that it is investigating an allegation of misconduct in relation to the Zambian women’s national team in the ongoing Australia and New Zealand 2023 World Cup.
Coach Bruce Mwape was accused of rubbing his hands over the chest of one of his players, The Guardian reported Thursday.
The allegation came two days before the team’s final group game against Costa Rica.
A FIFA spokesperson said, “FIFA takes any allegation of misconduct extremely seriously and has a clear process in place for anyone in football who wants to report an incident.”
He stated further details can’t be given as investigation is going on, but he confirmed that the football body has received the complaint.
“We can confirm that a complaint has been received in relation to the Zambian women’s national team and this is currently being investigated. We cannot provide further details regarding an ongoing investigation for obvious confidentiality reasons,” he stated.
The spokesperson further said, “Anyone who wishes to report allegations or information related to abuse in football can do so via FIFA’s confidential reporting platform, with all information that is submitted to FIFA handled in the strictest of confidence.”
He also said FIFA takes “the strongest possible sanctions” when guilt is established.
The spokesperson also mentioned that the world football governing body provides support to witnesses.
“In addition, FIFA offers support and assistance to ensure the safety of those who report a safeguarding issue, including witnesses who come forward and give testimony in FIFA Ethics cases. Where guilt is established, FIFA takes the strongest possible sanctions, including removing people from the game for life. Our track record demonstrates this,” he assured.
The Football Association of Zambia announced last September that it had referred a report regarding allegations of sexual abuse within the women’s football team to FIFA.
According to a report by The Guardian, Mwape was among those being investigated.
Upon the publication of The Guardian’s article, which featured an anonymous player saying “if he [Mwape] wants to sleep with someone, you have to say yes,” the FAZ referred to the statement it made last September.
This year’s FIFA World Cup tournament is the first in which the Zambian women team ever participated.
The team beat Costa Rica to record the country’s first-ever victory at the finals, although they exited the tournament at the group stage after defeats to Japan and Spain.
Zambia’s win in their World Cup debut has been overshadowed by the allegations against Mwape, who has been in charge since 2018. The news conference prior to their game against Spain ended early due to persistent questions about a prior investigation relating to misconduct within women’s football in Zambia.
Captain Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji were both on target as they recorded a first-ever victory in what was the first World Cup appearance for any Zambian team, men or women.
UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya has expressed an interest in venturing into professional wrestling (WWE) but has said he won’t want to be involved in it for a long period.
While discussing his prospect of venturing into professional wrestling with “The Halfcast Podcast”, Israel Adesanya made it clear that, rather than committing to a full-time WWE career, he said he would prefer making one, two, or possibly three appearances.
He said, “I always thought maybe I would, but I think I’ll do like stints like one, two, or maybe three but not like a weekly thing”.
The 34-year-old Nigerian-born Australian mixed martial artist opened up about his concerns about taking a full-time job with WWE by stressing that he liked to write his own stories and not let others choose the characters or the overall course of the story.
Hence, Israel Adesanya believes that committing to a lengthy spell in wrestling will be a betrayal of his identity and what he represents.
“I like to write my own story, I don’t want a writer writing my story and making me a heel this month and then the good guy this month. I’d rather just write my own story and yeah, I just feel like it’ll take away from me and it’ll be a disservice to myself. If I let someone else write my story and dictate how I’m perceived”, he said.
On who inspires him to consider a spell in wrestling, Adesanya said, “Watching him (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) on the mic, just roast five people five minutes straight and that’s just like a stand-up show. You know, playing with the mic and that kind of stuff, it seeps in and then you take bits and pieces, you’re inspired by those things.”
FOLLOWING the round-up of the group stage matches, three out of four of the African women’s football teams have scaled the hurdles from their respective groups to qualify for the knock-out stage of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Out of the four African representatives that qualified for the world cup, they are Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia. Only Zambia failed to progress to the next round of 16.
The ICIR had reported that none of the four African teams won their opening matches, casting doubt on their strengths on the global stage.
But, The ICIR observed that out of the total 12 matches played by the African quartet at the ongoing FIFA women’s world cup in Australia and New Zealand, each one of them won at least one match apart from Morocco winning two in a row.
Results from the group stage revealed that African sides won 5, lost 4 and drew 3 matches.
Nigeria and Cameroon are the only two African countries that have reached the knockout stage in the past. Nigeria became the first African side to progress to the knockout rounds in the USA in 1999, while Cameroon matched them in 2015 later in Canada.
It is believed this is the first time Africa had more than two teams advance from the group stage at the Women’s World Cup. However, this feat falls in the context of the tournament’s recent expansion to include more teams.
Round of 16 encounters
All three African sides qualified as the second from their groups. Due to this, they will fight tough teams to get to the top.
As the group stage commences tomorrow, 5, August, African representatives have another barrier to break. South Africa will face the Netherlands on Sunday, August 6, while, the next day, Monday, Nigeria will slug it out against England.
On Tuesday, August 8, Morroco will square against France.
[ICIR]
Walsh missed the Lionesses’ 6-1 win over China on Tuesday after injuring her knee against Denmark this time last week.
Scans have since shown the 26-year-old has not injured the anterior cruciate ligament in her knee and England clearly hold some hope she can play again at this World Cup.
The Lionesses trained this morning at the Central Coast Stadium and Walsh was the only member of the squad missing.
She is a doubt for Monday’s last-16 game against Nigeria in Brisbane, but her recovery is progressing.
Walsh was at the Central Coast Stadium, where England are training here in Australia, for the first time since injuring her knee.
England played in Adelaide on Tuesday and Walsh did not travel to the game. The squad then had a recovery session on Wednesday before travelling back to their base in Terrigal.
The players had a rest day yesterday and trained this morning as they gear up for Monday’s game against Nigeria.
Walsh was training away from the group and has been given an individual programme to follow. England have built a temporary gym at the Central Coast Stadium, which is located behind one of the venue’s stands.
Without Walsh in the team, England played a 3-4-1-2 formation against China on Tuesday and it worked well.
Manchester United captain Katie Zelem came into the midfield for Walsh and she will hope to keep her place alongside Georgia Stanway.
Stanway is one of three England players who will be suspended for the quarter-finals if they are booked.
Lauren Hemp and Lucy Bronze are in the same position, with yellow cards not wiped at the tournament until after the quarter-finals.
[standard]
Arsenal midfielder, Thomas Partey has held talks over a possible transfer move to Juventus.
Sky Italy reports that Partey has agreed personal terms with Juventus to join the club this summer.
The Serie A giants will now lodge an offer for the Ghanaian international, but are aware they need to sell one or two players before they can buy him.
However, it is unclear whether Arsenal would let Partey leave Emirates after midfield partner Granit Xhaka also departed the North London club this summer.
Partey joined Arsenal from Spanish La Liga giants Atletico Madrid for £45million in the summer of 2020.
[DailyPost]
Senegal gained a measure of revenge over West Africa rival Mali to record a sensational win en route to night’s final at the 2023 FIBA Women’s Afrobasket Championship in Kigali, Rwanda.
Senegal denied Mali back to back final appearance with 75-65 points victory at the BK Arena on Thursday night in the second semi final of the competition and the 11 times champions will now face Nigeria’s D’Tigress in the final.
Senegal had initially lost 72-49 points to Mali in the group games in which they actually lost both games but they came back when they had another chance through the qualification to the Quarter final and they have seized it with both hands.
They have won a the three games they have played against Egypt, Cameroon and now Mali.
Senegal won the first quarter 20-16 points but they were behind 38-36 points at the end of the first half. They had their best spell of the game in the third quarter which they won with 13 points and despite losing the last quarter 16-15 points they were still able to win the game by 75-65 points.
They will face D’Tigress on tonight after playing thrice in the final in 2005, 2017 and 2019. They lost all the three against the Nigerian team.
Senegal are the record winners off the FIBA Women’s Afrobasket Championship with 11 titles in their kitty. They also hold the record for consecutive wins which they set in 1981 having it for four consecutive periods in 1974, 1977, 1979 and 1981.
Nigeria’s D’Tigress are aiming to equal that record having won the last three editions of the competition from 2017 to 2021 and they will achieve that if they beat Senegal in tonight.
Former Chelsea defender, Gary Cahill has backed centre-back Levi Co to have a big 2023/24 season.
Cahill said that Colwill, who recently signed a new long-term deal with Chelsea, has massive potential.
According to him, the 20-year-old defender is a very good player and will learn a lot
from teammate Thiago Silva at Stamford Bridge.
Speaking about Colwill, Cahill said (per Chelsea’s official website): “You look at attributes you want in a centre-back and ask: Is he tall and good in the air? Does he have a good presence? Is he quick? Does he take up good positions to receive the ball? Is he composed on the ball? Levi Colwill has those attributes – now he must keep learning and progressing.
“So will playing alongside Thiago [Silva], who has achieved so much in the game. He can soak up things from him, carry on learning and learning. It will be a big season for him. It is clear he’s got massive potential and is a very good player.”
[DailyPost]
Aisha Falode, the Chairperson of the Nigerian Women’s Football League, has said that FIFA will still pay the 2023 Women’s World Cup prize money through the country’s federation.
FIFA secretary-general, Fatma Samoura following the qualification of Super Falcons to the second round of the Mundial, reportedly said the world’s football governing body would send unpaid allowance to the country’s women’s football team to the players directly.
FIFA had announced that every player participating in the World Cup group stage will earn $30,000.
The match bonuses will increase to $60,000 in the second round of the competition.
By this virtue, each player of the Nigerian team is expected to earn at least $60,000 for reaching the round of 16 in Australia and New Zealand.
Falode, while making the clarification during a chat with Lagos Talks FM on Wednesday, said that the World Cup prize money will be “ring-fenced” to ensure it gets to the players without interference from a third party.
She noted that Falcons’ prize money from the ongoing World Cup will still be routed through the NFF.
She said, “FIFA did not say it would pay the players directly. It says working through the member association – working through your federations, we will pay you this money through the federations,” the NWFL chair said.
“FIFA will pay the federations the money, and the federation pays the players with the instruction. Everybody knows it is there in black and white.”
Nigeria will battle England in a second-round contest on Monday.
More...
The 24-year-old Nigerian striker penned a three-year deal at The Hawthorns on Tuesday after leaving French club Bordeaux at the end of the 2022/23 campaign.
Maja spent the last four-and-a-half years in the south of France having previously represented Sunderland, with loan spells to Fulham and Stoke City in 2021 and 2022 respectively also forming part of his senior career C.V.
The striker was incredibly impressed by Corberán’s vision and mentality when speaking before making the switch to B71, and Maja says he’s excited to see just how much he can improve under Albion’s head coach.
Josh said: “It was certainly a fun experience playing in France. It’s completely different to the United Kingdom in terms of style and tempo, but I feel like I learnt a lot.
“Last year was probably the best year of my career in terms of consistency, goals and game time, so yeah, I would say it was a great experience overall.
“However, I felt like I needed a fresh start just because I had been away from the United Kingdom for a while. I spent four-and-a-half years in France. “We knew Albion were one of the clubs interested in me and our ambitions seemed to match quite well.
“The conversation I had with Carlos Corberán was short. I’ve only spoken to him once, but that’s probably all I needed.”
He continued: “I got a really good energy from him. He’s a serious coach with intense ideas and an intense mentality which is something that matches up with me and my values.
“He’s a football head, which I am as well.
“I’m hoping to learn a lot from him and to perform well. I’ve heard a lot of great things from team-mates from the past who have said good things about him.
“It’s exciting to be here and I’m looking forward to working with him.”
Maja heads to The Hawthorns off the back of an impressive term with Bordeaux in Ligue 2.
The forward scored 16 times in 38 appearances and was the division’s fourth most prolific marksman.
[Nation]
At least 14 countries have confirmed their spots in the Round of 16 at the ongoing FIFA Women’s World Cup in New Zealand and Australia, following the conclusion of Wednesday’s group stage fixtures.
South Africa defeated Italy 3-2, and France won 6-3 against Panama to book their places in the last 16. Jamaica drew 0-0 against Brazil, and Sweden won 2-0 against Argentina.
This means Sweden are through to the Round of 16 as they top Group G with nine points from three games, while Jamaica also qualified ahead of Brazil as they finished in second place in Group F.
The likes of Nigeria, England, Denmark, Netherlands, United States, Japan, and Spain are already qualified for the last 16.
Others are Australia, Norway, and Switzerland.
The final two countries that will claim the last two spots in the last 16 will be determined tomorrow.
[DailyPost]
Manchester United fans are no doubt in a celebration mood as club finally secure top transfer target.
National Daily can confirm that Rasmus Hojlund has almost completed his move to United after a successful medical. The 20-year-old has also filmed his first interview as Red Devils’ player after arriving at Carrington on Tuesday.
It is believed that Hojlund’s arrival will United fix their striking challenge
The Dane underwent his medical at United’s training ground and is reportedly set to sign a contract on Wednesday. The Old Trafford club thereafter confirm the move.
READ ALSO: Finally, Erik ten Hag gets his top transfer target, star arrives England for medicals
The striker will become Erik ten Hag’s third signing of the summer after Atlanta and United agreed a deal worth €75m (£64m) plus £10m (£8m) in add-ons.
National Daily learnt that the Red Devils have already agreed personal terms with Hojlund. The forward is to sign a five-year deal at United with the option of a further year.
A move to Old Trafford has been Hojlund’s preference with Ten Hag making him a top target after the Red Devils were priced out of a transfer for Harry Kane.
The striker was absent as Atalanta clashed against Bournemouth in pre-season on Saturday. This could be as result of his imminent summer switch ahead.
Hojlund is thought to have said his goodbyes to his team-mates and will soon become a United player.
The young striker registered nine goals and four assists across 32 Serie A games for Atalanta last term.
United have been in urgent need of more firepower this summer having relied heavily on Marcus Rashford last season, National Daily gathered.
[NationalDaily]
South Africa’s Banyana Banyana, on Wednesday, beat Italy 3-2 to qualify for the Round of 16 of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
South Africa’s Chrestinah Kgatlana’s scored a 93rd-minute winner in stoppage time to seal a second-round qualification. This is a historical feat for the South Africans as it is their first time ever.
Although South Africa led 2-1 with Magaia strike in the 67th minute, Italy levelled the scores after a crucial header from Arianna Caruso.
Italy needed at least a draw to qualify for the knockout round but Kgatlana’s late strike was the difference. The Africans finished on four points, behind group leaders Sweden. They join the Super Falcons of Nigeria in the next round of the tournament
South Africa’s Bayana Bayana will play the Netherlands in the last 16 on Sunday, while Nigeria will face England on Monday.