Panama defeat Paraguay to complete 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup line-up

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will take place in Australia and New Zealand; all 32 nations are now known.

The list of 32 competing nations at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is complete after Panama clinched the final spot during a tense inter-confederation playoff final against Paraguay on Thursday.

A day after Haiti and Portugal had both qualified for the tournament for the first time ever, it was the CONCACAF side’s moment to make history as they narrowly edged out the South Americans in Hamilton, New Zealand. In a game of relatively fewer clear opportunities to score, it took until the 75th minute for Panama to break the deadlock, with substitute Lineth Cedeno heading Marta Cox’s free-kick from deep into the Paraguayan net.

Earlier in the week, Paraguay had defeated Chinese Taipei in a penalty shootout in the playoff semi-finals but they ultimately came up short as they themselves looked to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time.

When does the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup take place?

Panama will join France, Brazil and Jamaica in Group F of the tournament proper, which will be played in Australia and New Zealand. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will get underway on 20 July and run for a month, with the final being played in Sydney on 20 August.