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FIFA Changes 2027 Women’s World Cup Draw to Keep Top Four Apart Until Semifinals
By Megan McCarthy
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FIFA confirmed Wednesday that the four highest-ranked teams at the 2027 Women’s World Cup will be placed on separate pathways in the tournament draw, keeping them apart until the semifinals provided each team wins its group.
The change, announced Nov. 11, mirrors the draw procedure used for the 2026 men’s World Cup. The 2027 women’s tournament in Brazil will feature 32 teams.
Under the current FIFA women’s rankings, the top four are reigning champion Spain, followed by the United States, Germany and England. The final seeding order, however, will be determined by the rankings released Dec. 7, meaning the order could still change before the draw.
Spain and Germany have already qualified for the World Cup.
The United States, a four-time Women’s World Cup champion, can clinch its place by defeating El Salvador on Nov. 27. England, the 2023 runner-up, still must get through Ukraine in a two-leg qualifier scheduled for Dec. 1 and Dec. 5.
The World Cup draw is set for Dec. 11 at 1:30 p.m. local time at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro.
Brazil, as host, will be placed in Group A. Pot 1 will include Brazil and the seven highest-ranked remaining teams. The next eight teams in the rankings will go into Pot 2, followed by the next eight in Pot 3.
Pot 4 will include the three winners of the inter-confederation playoff tournament, which concludes in March, along with the lowest-ranked qualified teams.
The draw will also continue to apply confederation restrictions. No group can contain more than one team from the same continent, with one exception: European teams can have a maximum of two representatives in the same group.
For the top four, the new procedure is designed to place each team on a separate route through the bracket, preventing a meeting before the semifinals if all four win their respective groups.
FIFA’s announcement did not provide an additional rationale for the change beyond its adoption of the procedure used for the 2026 men’s tournament.
Brazil will open the competition at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on June 24. The tournament final will also be played at the Maracanã on July 25.
The December draw will determine the full group-stage picture — and, under FIFA’s new procedure, establish the separate pathways for the teams occupying the top four places in the final Dec. 7 rankings.
— Megan McCarthy | Hail Meg
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