All of your questions answered before the World Cup kicks off

The Irish women’s international soccer team have reached the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand after a stellar victory over Scotland in October to qualify.

Donegal’s Amber Barrett netted the goal and dedicated the victory to the ten people who lost their lives in the Cresslough explosion earlier that month.

The girls in green created history as this is the first time the Irish women’s soccer team has ever made it to the World Cup. If you will be tuning in to the games or attending them in person, here is a run down of everything you need to know.

Where and when is the World Cup taking place?

This year’s women’s World Cup is taking place across Australia and New Zealand, spread over nine different cities Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Auckland, Dunedin, Hamilton and Wellington.

The opening match will kick off on July 20th at Eden park in Auckland, New Zealand between New Zealand and Norway. The final is set to be played on August 2oth at Stadium Australia in Sydney.

How many teams are going?

In total, 32 teams will be in attendance representing six different confederations: AFC in Asia, CAF in Africa, CONCACAF in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, CONMEBOL in South America, OFC in Oceania and UEFA in Europe.

Russia were disqualified from the competition due to their invasion of Ukraine.

Who is in Ireland’s group?

Ireland is in Group B with Australia, Canada and Nigeria.

Ireland v Australia – July 20th at 11am. (Irish time) This match will be played at the Accor Stadium in Sydney, the tournament’s largest stadium which holds over 80,000 spectators.

Ireland v Canada – July 26th at 1pm. (Irish time) This match will be played at HBF Park in Perth

Ireland v Nigeria – July 31st at 11am. (Irish time) This match will take place at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.

The Irish Squad

The final squad that will be heading to Australia has not yet been confirmed. The official announcement will come on June 29th and will consist of 23 players. The Irish women will play a send-off match against France in Tallaght Stadium on July 6th. The team will then depart for Australia on July 7th. The team will be managed by Vera Pauw and captained by Katie McCabe.

Are tickets still available?

Unfortunately, tickets are no longer available for the Republic of Ireland section as they had to be purchased before January 13th, 2023.

However, an additional 250,000 tickets went on sale on June 6th and can be purchased for general admission including obstructed view tickets which retail at a cheaper price.

The opening match in Auckland and the inaugural match in Sydney cost $30 to $80 to attend. Tickets for matches in the group stages of the World Cup range from $20 to $40. Admission to the quarter-final costs $30 to $80 while tickets to the semi-final range from $30 to $100. To attend the World Cup final, tickets cost $40 to $120.

The price difference depends on if the tickets are bought in category one which provides tickets in prime locations in the stadium, category two which offers tickets in locations next to prime locations, or category three which has tickets further away from prime locations.

Where can I watch the matches?

RTÉ will be broadcasting all 64 games from the World Cup across RTÉ2, RTÉ Player and RTÉ News Channel, with live match commentary on 2FM. Game analysis and live coverage will be presented by RTÉ’s Evanne Ní Chuillin, Peter Collins, Clare MacNamara and Marie Crowe.

RTÉ Soccer correspondent Tony O’Donoghue, Samantha Libreri and Paul O’Flynn will report from Australia on the build-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

RTÉ Sport’s commentary team for the World Cup will consist of George Hamilton, Des Curran, Stephanie Roche, Adrian Eames and Clare Shine, and the panel of studio experts will include Karen Duggan, Jennifer Beattie, Richie Sadlier, Méabh De Búrca and Rachel Corsie, with more names to be announced.

What are Ireland’s chances of winning the World Cup?

Ireland has been given a 4/1 chance of winning the World Cup. COYGIG!

Amber Barrett of Republic of Ireland celebrates scoring their side’s first goal with teammate Diane Caldwell during the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup play-off round 2 match between Scotland and Republic of Ireland at Hampden Park on October 11th, 2022 in Glasgow, Scotland. Photo: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images X

Sourse: breakingnews.ie

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