Women’s World Cup 2023 group tiebreakers: What happens if teams are tied level on points?

The 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is the first edition to feature 32 teams, as the men’s version of the FIFA tournament has done since 1998.

Due to this expansion, the group stage will feature a structure familiar to many fans, with the participating nations split into eight groups of four.

In this 32-team format, only the top two teams in each group make it to the knockout round, doing away with the old third-place qualifier table and calculations.

Still, with such thin margins at the highest level of the sport, there are sure to be situations where teams finish level on points in the group stage. At that point, tiebreakers are needed to flush out who qualifies for the next stage and who goes home early.

MORE: Top 10 players at the 2023 Women’s World Cup

2023 Women’s World Cup group tiebreakers

The tiebreakers for the 2023 Women’s World Cup are identical to those used by the men in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

If teams are tied on points in their group — three for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss — then the following tiebreakers will be used, as outlined in the official tournament rules (page 25):

Overall goal difference: Superior goal difference in all group matches;
Overall goals scored: Most goals scored in all group matches;
Head-to-head points: Most points in group matches between tied teams;
Head-to-head goal difference: In group matches between tied teams;
Head-to-head goals scored: Most goals scored in group matches between tied teams;
Disciplinary points (‘Fair Play’): Fewest yellow and red cards based on a points formula;
Drawing of lots (i.e. random draw).

Disciplinary points

The sixth tiebreaker, disciplinary points (also known as ‘fair play points’) are a simple points system FIFA assigns to yellow and red cards. 

The team that has accumulated the fewest of these over the course of the group stage comes out ahead if this tiebreaker is used:

Points
Card

1
Yellow card

3
Second yellow card/Indirect red card

4
Straight red card

5
Yellow card and straight red card

How does drawing of lots work at World Cup?

A random drawing of lots is similar to how the World Cup or UEFA Champions League draw works, only on a much smaller scale.

There are two pots: one pot with a ball for each team name in question, and one pot with a ball for each standings position in question.

The FIFA official overseeing the drawing of lots first selects a ball from the country pot and opens it. Then, another individual selects a ball from the position pot and opens it. That country is then slotted into that position.

Has a Women’s World Cup ever used drawing of lots?

There has never been a situation that required a drawing of lots in the history of the Women’s World Cup.

Throughout the history of the Women’s World Cup group stage, all teams level on points have been separated by other tiebreakers, either goal difference, goals scored, or head-to-head matchup. That includes the editions when the best third-place teams qualified to the knockouts.

In fact, there have only been three situations where a tiebreaker other than goal differential was required to separate teams in any capacity.

The first came in the inaugural 1991 tournament where Chinese Taipei qualified for the knockout stage via the third-place table over Brazil despite finishing level on both points and goal differential, as Chinese Taipei had scored two goals to Brazil’s one.

In the 2015 tournament, China finished ahead of the Netherlands in Group A thanks to one more goal scored, which was a fair result considering China had also defeated the Netherlands. Ultimately, both qualified for the knockout stage as the Netherlands ranked high enough amongst third-placed teams.

Then, in 2019, Australia finished above Brazil in Group C on goals scored, but both qualified for the knockout stage as Brazil ranked high enough in the third-place table.

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