The 2023 FIFA Women’s world cup is around the corner. Plans have been underway since 2019 to ensure the event goes smoothly. Corporate advisor, Peter Biantes, said that the 2023 event will surely be an unforgettable one. Peter Biantes is an experienced business leader in the corporate world. He has worked in many sectors such as the technology sector, healthcare sector, and so on. Furthermore, Peter is an all-round man, as he believes a person should work and relax at the same time. This is why he plays soccer, does woodwork, travels, and draws.

Who is Going to Host the Game?

Several countries made a bid for the right to host the FIFA Women’s Cup coming up in 2019. Even Peter Biantes’ country, Australia, was among them. The bidding started early, around February. FIFA gave those interested in hosting the tournament till the 15th of March 2019 to submit their applications. In addition, the association gave them till April 16 of the same year to give the complete bidding forms. However, these dates were changed to give more rooms for more countries to participate in the bidding. The deadline for the bidding declaration was moved to August 16, 2019. And the complete bidding form submission deadline was shifted to September 2, 2019.

How Many Countries Bid for Hosting Rights?

Initially, nine countries bid for the events. These include two and possibly three Asian countries, two Oceanic countries, one African country, and four South American countries. Later on, Belgium joined but withdrew from the bid. Months later, Bolivia also left the bid. Additionally, two other countries also dropped out in 2020. They had earlier submitted their consent to bid in 2019. In a twist, two countries from Oceania came together to combine their bids as one. That is, they joined two bids and submitted them as a single bid.

Which Country Won?

Who is Going to Host the Game

Australia and New Zealand jointly won the bid. These two countries would be hosting the Cup together and this was revealed to the public in mid-2020. Colombia lost to both countries because its vote was less than theirs. This is the first time for the winning countries to be hosting a FIFA Adult Cup. Furthermore, it is the first time two countries will host the Women’s FIFA tournament together. On the other hand, it is the second time a joint hosting would occur for general football. The previous joint hosting right was given to two Asian countries.

Similarly, it’s the first time two countries from different confederations, but within the same Hemisphere, win the hosting bid. Note that Australia and New Zealand belong to different confederations, even if they are from Oceania.

Countries that Will Participate

32 teams are registered to play in the FIFA World Cup this year. That is, 32 teams representing 32 countries will participate. These numbers were confirmed after the conclusion of the 2023 FIFA qualifying matches. One of the participating countries, the U.S.A. has won many matches in the Women’s category and has excellent playing records.

Some Countries that will Participate Are:

  1. USA
  2. Norway
  3. Panama
  4. Republic of Ireland
  5. Germany
  6. Haiti
  7. Spain
  8. Portugal
  9. England

Some Countries that will Participate Are

Why did the number of Participating Teams Increase?

FIFA increased the teams that would play this year for some reason. First of all, the number of sponsors will increase due to the increasing number of participants. This also means more money and brand ambassadorship deals for the players. Two, FIFA has done this before, and it was successful. In fact, the number of people who attended the event rose with the increased number of players. It also gives more countries the chance to join in the game.

Which Media Stations Have the Rights to Broadcast?

This year’s tournament would be different because it would be a stand-alone event, unlike other previous tournaments. Before, Men’s and Women’s tournaments were paired side by side. FIFA officials remarked that people have expressed massive interest in partnering with them. Also, media partners from various regions are going to join the media team in the host countries. FIFA is hopeful that its worldwide audience will rise from over 1 billion in the last edition, to 2 billion. And from the responses from the world so far, it would be so.

How did FIFA Choose These Stations?

FIFA got several broadcasting bids from different stations and media firms, but it rejected them in late 2022. Lots of privately owned and public broadcasting stations bid for broadcasting rights. These stations gave low bids for the women’s football teams participating in the tournament. Unfortunately, they underestimated FIFA’s determination to ensure women footballers get what they deserve. Peter Biantes especially commends the FIFA authorities for rejecting such low bids. According to him, women football players deserve to get good pay, just like their male counterparts.

Why did FIFA Reject the Bids?

A FIFA official said the association decided to reject some broadcasting stations because their bidding prices were low. And this doesn’t align with how popular Women’s Football is. Hence, he admonished media houses to use the tournament to put themselves out there.

Conclusion

Peter Biantes, as a football lover, has vowed not to miss any football match in the upcoming Women’s Football Cup. Lastly, he hopes many stakeholders will support this year’s Women’s Cup as a way of supporting the women’s players. He also urged brands and sponsors to up their bids, and not underprice them.