Brazil World Cup news and team outlook

Brazil has fresh World Cup news signals for a measured team outlook. Women's Africa Cup of Nations 2026: Full schedule, all results and group standings The 2026 edition will feature 16 teams for the first time, expanded from 12, and will take place across five venues in Rabat (three) and Casablanca (two). The 16 teams are divided into four groups of four teams each. The four semi-finalists will secure automatic qualification for the FIFA Women's World Cup Brazil 2027, making every knockout-stage match crucial in the quest to reach the world's biggest stage. [...] Quarter-final 3 – 22:00 CET Winner Group C vs Runner-up Group D – Al Medina Stadium, Rabat Quarter-final 4 – 19:00 CET Winner Group D vs Runner-up Group C – Larbi Zaouli Stadium, Casablanca ## FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 Qualifying Play-offs – Thursday, 13 August (Between the four losing quarter-finalists; winners qualify for the inter-confederation play-offs.) WC Play-off 1 – 22:00 CET Loser Quarter-final 2 vs Loser Quarter-final 3 – Larbi Zaouli Stadium, Casablanca [...] WC Play-off 2 – 19:00 CET Loser Quarter-final 1 vs Loser Quarter-final 4 – Moulay Rachid Stadium, Casablanca ## Semi-finals – Wednesday, 12 August Semi-final 1 – 22:00 CET Winner Quarter-final 1 vs Winner Quarter-final 4 – Moulay El Hassan Stadium, Rabat Semi-final 2 – 19:00 CET Winner Quarter-final 2 vs Winner Quarter-final 3 – Rabat Olympic Stadium, Rabat ## Third-place Match – Saturday, 15 August WSL fixtures 2026-27: Key dates and questions from new season schedule Advertisement The league finishes on May 23 and the World Cup kicks off on June 24 in Brazil, meaning a tight turnaround for players in the league travelling to the tournament. At the 2023 World Cup, clubs in England employed more players selected for the tournament than any other nation (104). Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester City were the third, fourth, and fifth-best represented teams at the tournament, only behind Barcelona and OL Lyonnes (then Olympique Lyonnais). [...] The calendar has not thrown up many direct clashes late in the campaign between last season’s top four. Arsenal’s trip to face Manchester United at Old Trafford on the penultimate weekend is the headline fixture. Games between the three newly promoted teams will also be finished by the end of March. ## How will World Cup preparations impact the season? [...] Chelsea and England defender Lucy Bronze will be among the players eyeing the World Cup in Brazil next summer (Harriet Lander – The FA/The FA via Getty Images) Most teams will therefore know if they have secured their place by the turn of the year; the last three spots will be decided in the final phase of the inter-confederation playoffs in February 2027. Advertisement