Aust, NZ host 2023 Women’s World Cup

Zurich: Australia and New Zealand will host the 2023 Women’s World Cup, Fifa has announced.

The joint bid got the nod ahead of Colombia, which was the only other rival in the running after Brazil and Japan dropped out of the race earlier in June.

The 2023 version will be the first in the women’s game to feature 32 sides - up from the current 24.

The competition is scheduled to take place from July to August 2023. FIFA president Gianni Infantino said: “The bidding process was highly competitive. We would like to thank both of the bidders for their remarkable work. It was really, really well prepared.”

The Australia and New Zealand bid received 22 of the 35 votes cast by the FIFA Council members, with Colombia getting 13 votes.

Football Association chairman Greg Clarke voted for Colombia as did the other eight Uefa members. Infantino said he was “surprised” by Uefa members voting for Colombia, despite the lower score in Fifa’s technical evaluation of each bid. Colombia received a score of 2.8 out of 5.0, while Australia and New Zealand was marked 4.1.

“These (technical bid) reports have to mean something,” said Infantino.