Sydney, 20 August 2023 (FIFA/Forbes)

After a month and 64 matches, the FIFA Women’s World Cup comes to an end with La Roja’s players etching their names in golden letters as the new champions of the world.

FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 concluded today with Spain lifting the trophy after beating England 1-0 in the final at Stadium Australia on Sunday.

The tournament was a massive success in terms of crowd attendance as nearly two million fans passed through the gates in nine host cities after Sunday’s final crowd of 75,784 is added to the tally.

It must be noted that more than 1.1. million fans came to the stadiums for 52 matches, with an average crowd of 21,756, during the last Women’s World Cup in France four years ago.

La Roja won the World Cup for the first time in their history and became the fifth team to win it after USA (4), Germany (2), Norway (1), and Japan (1). Prior to this year’s edition, they had only ever won one match at the tournament.

Olga Carmona scored the only goal of the match in the 29th minute of the first half and cemented her name in the history books.

Geo Super reported about Individual Awards. Apart from the World Cup, four individual awards were given to deserving players for their immaculate performances during the month-long mega event.

Spain’s Aitana Bonmati won the Golden Ball for being the best player in the tournament. With three goals and two assists, she contributed to five goals for her team and was undoubtedly one of the key reasons why they lifted the World Cup.

Japan’s Hinata Miyazawa won the Golden Boot as she scored five goals in the tournament, which was the most. Although her team could not go past the quarter-finals but she will have something to take home.

Spain’s hero of the quarter and semi-final Salma Parallvelo was awarded the FIFA Best Young Player award as just at the age of 19, she stepped up in two of the most important matches and guided her side to the final.

England’s Mary Earps won the Golden Glove for her outstanding performance throughout the tournament, especially in the final where she made four saves to keep the tie alive till the last moment. She also kept three clean sheets in the tournament.

Ona Batlle’s wide-eyed glee when speaking to FIFA minutes after lifting football’s most coveted trophy reflected the emotions of a young player who could not quite comprehend what she had achieved.

“Wow,” she replied, with a puff of her cheeks, when asked how it felt to be called a world champion. “It’s just amazing. It feels unbelievable. It was incredible to share that moment with my team-mates.”

The 24-year-old full-back delivered the latest in a string of exceptional individual displays in Spain’s 1-0 FIFA Women’s World Cup™ final win over England. Her intelligence, dynamism and class helped shut down the Lionesses’ explosive strike force, as La Roja delivered a complete performance to win the title for the first time in the nation’s history.

Spain’s poise and supreme technical ability were evident throughout the showpiece clash. They controlled possession for extended periods and created a wealth of opportunities against an England side who had conceded just three times in their six Australia & New Zealand 2023 games prior to the final.

“We did a really good job,” added Batlle. “They are a very good team and we knew it was going to be tough. We had to stay together and work. We have shown we have talent and we also work hard. Also, everyone [in the squad] believed we could win this tournament. That’s such an important thing.”

The final – which was played in front of an electric crowd of more than 75,000 at Sydney’s Stadium Australia – was an elite-quality contest between two European heavyweights. The game’s decisive moment came just before the half-hour mark, with captain Olga Carmona’s splendid strike befitting of an unforgettable occasion.

“Olga is a very good-mate and it was very special [to see her score],” added Batlle. “She’s been showing she’s a really good full-back. She’s offensive, which showed tonight! She won the player of the match and we have enjoyed that [achievement] with her. She is a very good captain. She has that belief in the team and is always talking to everyone about that.”

As well as Spain’s scintillating attacking football, they also showcased their mental resolve after Jennifer Hermoso saw a second-half penalty saved by England goalkeeper Mary Earps. The Lionesses fans, who outnumbered their Spanish counterparts in Sydney, erupted when their inspirational No1 made the stop and a momentum shift appeared on the cards.

Spain, however, proved unflappable and retained control of the game, eventually seeing out the victory with few alarms. Earps, in fact, was the busier of the goalkeepers in the game’s final stages, with the Manchester United star making several fine saves to keep her team within striking distance.

Batlle, who played with Earps for three years at United, said: “I know her level and I think she was amazing again tonight. We knew it was going to be tough to score against her. Thankfully, we made it happen.”

La Roja competed in the global finals for the first time at Canada 2015, with their triumph eight years later illustrative of Spanish women’s football’s inexorable progress.

Last year, they won both the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup™ and FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup™ – and their victory Down Under means they have become the first nation to hold all three titles at the same time.

“We want to keep growing,” Batlle concluded. “It’s just the beginning.”

Spain head coach Jorge Vilda said the “suffering was necessary” after his team lifted the World Cup for the first time in their history after a 1-0 win over England in Sunday’s final.  The 42-year-old’s long tenure as coach was called into question last year when 15 national team players sent letters to the Spanish FA (RFEF) saying they would no longer play for Spain while Vilda remained coach.

England Captain Millie Bright said she is “absolutely heartbroken” after they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Spain in the World Cup final, but manager Sarina Wiegman insisted they can be proud of their campaign.

Wiegman said the team were devastated but should be proud of how they battled through the tournament, overcoming adversity in the process only to fall just short at the last hurdle.

Following is the brief about the tournament.

The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four nations. The top two in each group advanced to the knockout rounds.

The competition then moved onto a round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final. The tournament was hosted by Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to Aug. 20.

THIRD PLACE

Saturday, Aug. 19
Sweden 2-0 Australia – (Lang Park, Brisbane)

SEMIFINALS

Tuesday, Aug. 15
Spain 2-1 Sweden – (Eden Park, Auckland)

Wednesday, Aug. 16
England 3-1 Australia – (Stadium Australia)

QUARTER FINALS

Friday, Aug. 11
Spain 2-1, AET Netherlands – (Wellington Regional)
Japan 1-2 Sweden – (Eden Park, Auckland)

• Opening Ceremony: Thursday, July 20, 2023
• Group stage: July 20-August 3
• Round of 16: August 5-8
• Quarterfinals: August 11-12
• Semifinals: August 15-16
• Third-place match: August 19
• WWC Final: Sunday, August 20