The football governing body said that this FIFA Women’s Cup event significantly boosted the sport where new attendance records were set during various matches in Australia (hosts) and New Zealand (co-hosts).
The first semi-final game between Spain and Sweden on Tuesday witnessed a record-breaking audience of 43,217 at Auckland’s Eden Park in New Zealand making it the highest-watched game where Spain secured a 2-1 victory and booked the first spot into the finals.
The football officials reported that they witnessed 700,000 fans attending 29 games held in the country which is the highest for any FIFA women’s event.
The New Zealand chief executive Andrew Pragnell said “ This FIFA World Cup has witnessed a colossal change in the way of this sport and particularly Women’s football in New Zealand”.
The first attendance record was broken on the first day of the World Cup where more than 42,000 people witnessed the clash between New Zealand and Norway. The record was surpassed during the round of 16 when Spain faced Switzerland followed by Sweden’s victory over Japan in the quarter-finals.
The FA Chief of Australia also stated that this year’s WC is the greatest-attended event ever where it broke the records of the 2015 Canada World Cup. they also surpassed their expected target of 1.5 million during the league stage.
The average attendance had also increased compared to the last FIFA Women’s World Cup. the 2015 edition had an average attendance of 26000 whereas this year the attendance average is around 30000.
The Aussies also witnessed an impressive craze in their jersey sale proving the sport and event a huge success.
“This World Cup had set standards for Women’s football,” Pragnell said after the opening game at Eden Park. this country also hosted the Women’s Rugby and Cricket World Cup last year proving that the country is capable of delivering world-class events.
The hosts are set to face England in the second semi-final. Australian coach Tony Gustavsson while talking to the reporters said that he expects a close contest but it also depends on the support of the crowd. He added that according to the rankings England are the favourites to win and their starting players play for the top clubs in the world.
He concluded by saying that the England side has one thing missing which is the support of the crowd, the Aussies stand confident with the support of the crowd ahead of their semi-final game.
Semi-Final Summary: Intense Battle Between Sweden and Spain
Spain secured a victory in a thrilling contest against Sweden where Olga Carmona stood out for the team scoring a last-minute goal for Spain to reach their first-ever World Cup final.
The first half concluded without a goal scored from the sides but the last ten minutes came out as a game-changer. Spain’s Salma Celeste opened the contest by scoring a goal in the 81st minute but the Sweden side also replied with a goal in the 88th minute.
However, Rebecka Blomqvist’s efforts fell short as Olga immediately replied with a goal in the 89th minute and booked the final’s berth.
The Spanish women will be eyeing to create history by becoming the second country to win both men’s and women’s events. Germany holds the record for winning the titles in both events.
List of FIFA Women’s World Cup Winners:
1991- United States of America
1995- Norway
1999- United States of America
2003- Germany
2007- Germany
2011- Japan
2015- United States of America
2019- United States of America
