AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — There can be a first-time winner of the Women’s World Cup this 12 months, and possibly, simply possibly, it will likely be host nation Australia.

The Matildas, serving as co-hosts of the event with New Zealand, grew to become the primary dwelling workforce because the United States in 1999 to win a quarterfinal in 9 Women’s World Cups. Australia has reached its first semifinal in workforce historical past and faces England on Wednesday for an opportunity to play for the title.

“I genuinely really believe that this team can do great history in so many ways,” Australia coach Tony Gustavsson stated, “not just winning football games, but the way that they can inspire the next generation, how they can unite the nation, how they can leave a legacy that is much bigger that football.”

England, the European champion, superior with a 2-1 victory over upstart Colombia. England additionally reached the semifinals in 2015 and 2019, solely to complete third and fourth and by no means attain the Women’s World Cup remaining.

But earlier than the Australia and England showdown, first-time semifinalist Spain takes on powerhouse Sweden on Tuesday in Auckland.

Aside from a 4-0 loss to Japan in group play, Spain has been a power all through the event. It even tuned out an earthquake roughly an hour earlier than its quarterfinal win over 2019 runner-up Netherlands.

The earthquake Friday in New Zealand’s capital of Wellington measured 5.6 on the Richter scale and created minor shaking in and across the stadium.

“We were so concentrated on the game that we didn’t feel it, although we felt some shakes at the hotel the day before,” Spain coach Jorge Vilda stated. “The victory of Spain was the earthquake.”

Sweden, in the meantime, is the highest-ranked workforce nonetheless within the event at second on this planet, in accordance with FIFA. The Swedes obtained into the semifinals by knocking off beforehand undefeated Japan, the 2011 winners and final remaining champions within the event after so many early eliminations of the perfect groups in girls’s soccer.

“I think we have the team to go all the way,” left again Jonna Andersson stated, “and now we are one step closer.”

AUSTRALIA

The Matildas superior after a tense — and electrical — penalty shootout 7-6 over France in entrance of a sold-out crowd in Brisbane, Australia.

It took 20 penalties to resolve the winner within the longest shootout within the historical past of the event. It was the sport of a lifetime for goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold, who stepped as much as take a penalty with the rating at 3-3 however hit the put up.

Arnold then managed to twice save photographs from French midfielder Kenza Dali, the primary being waved off after Arnold was dominated to have come off her line for the primary save. Arnold stated she was “incredibly disappointed” to have missed her shot on objective and thanked her teammates for maintaining the Matildas within the sport.

Australia, at twelfth on this planet, is the lowest-ranked workforce remaining within the event.

Sam Kerr, the injured celebrity who missed all of group play, got here off the bench towards France however ended up taking part in practically a full sport when the match went to further time. Kerr transformed her penalty kick. And the Australians have additionally been boosted by the play of 20-year-old Mary Fowler, who has stepped in to fill Kerr’s void on this event.

Arnold stated the Matildas want a day to regroup earlier than specializing in England.

“I don’t want to ever get ahead of myself, and we’re all the same in that aspect,” she stated. “We just take one game at a time, one half at a time, whatever that is, and we just keep getting to the next step every time. So now that we’ve made the semifinal for the first time, we’ll take a moment to process what we’ve actually done.”

ENGLAND

England very a lot desires so as to add a World Cup title to final 12 months’s European championship, and coach Sarina Wiegman understands the Lionesses can have their fingers full in a semifinal that can be a house sport for Australia.

Wiegman’s solely loss as England supervisor in 37 matches was a 2-0 loss to Australia in a pleasant 4 months in the past. Now within the semifinals for a 3rd consecutive World Cup, England should beat the house workforce to advance to its first remaining.

“It’s going to be really big,” Wiegman stated of the semifinal. “It’s probably going to be bigger than I imagined now. I’ll talk to my players and staff and see what that rivalry is. We’ve had such a warm welcome and we’ve really enjoyed our time here in Australia. I really like the people here but that doesn’t mean there’s no rivalry. So we’ll see that Wednesday.”

England already has gained in entrance of a hostile crowd - the 75,784 in attendance for its quarterfinal win over Colombia had been principally clad in Colombian colours - and Wiegman stated “we anticipate an analogous crowd for Australia.

“We are really looking forward to it. We know that it’s an away game,” she stated. “Let’s try to (use it as) an inspiration.”

England star Lauren James will miss her second consecutive sport due to a suspension for receiving a pink card within the quarterfinals.

SWEDEN

Sweden’s present workforce has been labeled the “Golden Generation” of its nation’s historical past of ladies’s soccer, however the Swedes have but to stay as much as that billing on a global stage.

Now it has knocked off each the United States and Japan to achieve the semifinals and a Tuesday match towards Spain in Auckland. Sweden practically gained an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo two years in the past however misplaced to Canada within the remaining, and within the World Cup, the Swedes had been runners-up in 2003 and three-time third-place finishers.

A spotlight of every Sweden win has been the taking part in of Swedish band Abba’s songs within the stadiums after the victories, and striker Kosovare Asllani has a request for Tuesday: “I love ‘Lay Your Love on Me,’” she stated.

“It’s so nice when you hear the Abba songs after the game. You can’t help but smile,” she stated. “I’m just very proud of the team performance but we’re not satisfied here. Obviously want to go all the way.”

SPAIN

Spain was the primary workforce to safe a spot within the semifinals with a 2-1 win over 2019 runner-up Netherlands in further time of the quarterfinals.

Just making it to the quarterfinals was a lift for Spain, ranked seventh on this planet however had by no means earlier than superior to the quarterfinals in its two earlier World Cup appearances. But of their third event, La Roja have been improbable.

Spain blew by way of its first two video games of group play earlier than struggling a humiliating 4-0 loss to Japan within the finale. Vilda made a batch of lineup modifications for the knockout spherical, which led to a 5-1 win over Switzerland, after which the quarterfinal upset over the Dutch.

It put Spain on target for a rematch with the Japanese, however they had been upset within the second semifinal by Sweden and La Roja now faces the third-ranked workforce on this planet on Tuesday at Eden Park in Auckland.

“We’ve reached somewhere we’ve never reached before, and done it playing a good game as well, with a team that is convinced that we can go even further,” Vilda stated. “The rival that we meet and face in the semifinals, it will be one of the best teams in the world.”

Spain and Sweden have by no means met within the World Cup — Spain didn’t even qualify for the primary six tournaments - however performed to a 1-1 draw final October in a pleasant in Cordoba, Spain.

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