FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027: England hammer Ukraine in qualifiers; Spain, Germany register victories

European champions England made a winning start in their bid for automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup when they defeated Ukraine 6-1 in Antalya, Turkey, on Tuesday.

Ukraine has been unable to organize matches since the Russian invasion in 2022.

Security concerns were raised before the match following the outbreak of war in the Middle East, although England manager Sarina Wiegman said before the match that «England have received reassurances about security concerns».

Laura Blindkilde Brown hit the crossbar in a goalless first half, but the two-time European champions only found the net early in the second half when Arsenal striker Alessia Russo scored twice in four minutes.

Yana Kalinina pulled a goal back for Ukraine just before the end, but England, who wore black armbands in tribute to former Lioness Lynda Hale, who died last week, immediately stepped up a gear.

Georgia Stanway, who was excellent throughout, then scored twice in six minutes, the first from the penalty spot, and Jess Park also scored a goal in the dying minutes.

«I wouldn’t say harsh words (during halftime),» Wiegman said ITV. «We put a lot of effort into it, we played the way we wanted. We just wanted to score more goals. We have to do that better.»

England’s biggest rival for direct qualification from European Group A3 to the World Cup in Brazil is world champions Spain, who kicked off with a 3-0 win over Iceland in Castellon de la Plana.

Barcelona forward Claudia Pina scored twice before Bayern’s Edna Imade, who came on as a substitute at the start of the second half, completed the scoring with her first international goal.

Malard saves France

Two-time World Cup winner Germany took control of Group A4 by beating Slovenia 5-0 in Dresden. Vivien Endemann and Elisa Senss put the Germans 2-0 within 11 minutes, but they had to wait until the start of the second half for more.

Linda Dallmann and Larissa Muehlhaus doubled the score on her debut, while Manchester United’s Lea Schueller added a fifth.

In the other match in the 1995 group, Norway won 1-0 against Austria.

In Group A2, Melvine Malard came on as a substitute and saved France with two quick goals as they came from a goal down to beat Ireland 2-1 in Tallaght.

Katie McCabe swept the ball home in the 12th minute to give the hosts a surprise lead, which kept the French at bay until Manchester United striker Malard scored in the 71st minute, moments after coming on.

Eight minutes later, Malard pounced again to give France the lead. Denise O’Sullivan almost leveled for the Irish in extra time with a rasping drive, but Marie-Antoinette Katoto headed off the line to secure the three points.

In the other match, Poland and the Netherlands drew 2-2 in Gdansk.

Denmark made an impressive start in Group A1 with a 3-1 home win over Serbia, while Real Madrid midfielder Filippa Angeldal scored the only goal in Sweden’s 1-0 win in Italy.

Only the winners of each of the four European ‘League A’ groups qualify automatically. The remaining twelve teams will enter the play-offs, which will also involve the four group winners from League B, the six group winners and the two best runners-up from League C.

Published on March 4, 2026