Welcome to Group F. Here, you’ll find teams like France, Brazil, Jamaica, and Panama, the tournament’s true group of death. Each team brings something different, with world-class weapons at their disposal. We’re jumping in and giving you our Women’s World Cup Group F prediction.
Let’s start by looking at the #5 ranked team in the world, France. Over the past few years, like many other women’s teams, Les Bleues have been engaged in a battle with their Federation over the way they’ve been treated by France football. Regardless of the politics off the field, it seems that things are starting to look up for the squad on the field.
France has a new manager in Hervé Renard, whom the players have really warmed up to, and although they have some key injuries, they will welcome back their all-time leading goal scorer Eugénie Le Sommer to the lineup. Not only does this team have veteran experience on their bench, but they also have a wealth of young and passionate talent looking to make their mark.
Similarly, Brazil will be relying on their younger talent to come through. This team would love to win a World Championship for one of the greatest players in the game’s history, Marta, who will be playing in her final World Cup. One of those young talents is 23-year-old Kerolin, who is a constant scoring threat every time she charges down the field at top speed.
If any team knows how to play with lightning-fast speed, it’s Jamaica, who could be the biggest sleeper team in the tournament. Don’t be fooled by their current world ranking; this team has one of the biggest stars in Women’s football, Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw. Watch out if the Reggae Girlz can find their rhythm and get the ball to Shaw in open space.
Finally, Panama is making their debut in the World Cup, but they should not be underestimated. They have the rising star Marta Cox, who plays both attacking midfield and forward. This is a team that excels on defense, but they are inexperienced on the global stage, which makes their “nothing to lose” approach a potential threat.
Women’s World Cup Group F Prediction
France is the better team overall and have high-end talent like Kadidiatou Diani to help propel them out of Group F, but as for second place, that might be tougher to predict. Many like Brazil; in fairness, they have high-end talent like Kadidiatou Diani to get the job done, but you have to wonder if Jamaica can throw a wrench into those plans.
The Jamaican squad can score, and they’re fast, but their Achilles heel is defense, so although they might finally win their first World Cup game (probably against Panama), I don’t see their backline as good enough to stop teams like France or Brazil who are motivated to get out of this group. Unscathed though? On paper, it’s easy to predict two world-class teams advancing, but this is the World Cup, and Jamaica and Panama are resilient and could cause problems and be hard to put away. We will stick to our guns and go with France and Brazil, but it won’t be easy.
Prediction: France, Brazil
Game Schedule
July 23: France vs. Jamaica (6 a.m. ET) July 24: Brazil vs. Panama (7 a.m. ET) July 29: France vs. Brazil (6 a.m. ET) July 29: Panama vs. Jamaica (8:30 a.m. ET) August 2: Jamaica vs. Brazil (6 a.m. ET) August 2: Panama vs. France (6 a.m. ET)