Group F will be closely followed by many over the coming weeks, as the only country from the British Isles, England, feature alongside one of the tournament’s favourites to lift the trophy, France.
Mexico and Colombia make up the other two spots in Group F and will hope to provide a shock on the biggest stage possible, despite crashing out in the group stages in all their previous finals.
With four of the six third-placed teams also progressing to the next round, an early exit for either England or France would be humiliating – with the duo scoring 106 goals across qualification between them, and conceding just four.
Colombia
World ranking: 28
Nickname: The Coffee Growers
Previous best: Group stage (2011)
The Colombians faced a harrowing introduction to this prestigious tournament in their last-run out, facing firm favourites Sweden and the United States in their opening two fixtures, and the lowest ranked team in the group stages will again be unlikely top-half finishers.
Ingrid Vidal, the oldest Colombian to travel to Canada, possesses a goal tally of 11 from 50 appearances, while the more prolific Catalina Usme has 19 goals from 40 appearances.
Two players, Carolina Arbeláez and Manuela González, join the squad with just a single international appearance each, aged 20 and 19 respectively.
England
World ranking: 6
Nickname: The Three Lionesses
Previous best: Quarter-finals (1995, 2007, 2011)
England head into the competition on fine form, after victory over World Cup hosts Canada in the Cyprus Cup final in March. However, the last time they achieved such a fate, they horrifically crashed out of the European Championships soon after, and will hope for an alternative fate this time around.
Progression to the knock-out rounds will undoubtedly be expected from head coach Mark Sampson, but the general consensus suggests lifting the trophy appears to be out of the reach for The Three Lionesses after failing to beat some of the world’s top teams, such as the USA and France, in recent friendlies.
This said, the line-up, captained by Steph Houghton, looks the best in a long time, potentially due to the league developments in England over the last few years. These changes have allowed for rising star Fran Kirby to be named in the squad, despite featuring in the second tier, while all-time top goalscorer Fara Williams and Chelsea’s Eniola Aluko will add vital experience.
Kirby has been a force to reckon with in the FA WSL, finishing last season as top goal scorer across both tiers and already bagging herself 11 goals in just 5 games this campaign.
Casey Stoney and Lucy Bronze will make up a strong defensive unit for England, alongside goalkeeper Carly Telford – all of whom were named in the WSL Team of the Year 2015.
France
World ranking: 3
Nickname: The Blues
Previous best: Fourth place (2011)
The French national team have gone from strength to strength over the last few years, and are deemed by some to be potential winners of the tournament this year, after rising to their highest ever world ranking position.
After reaching the semi-finals last time round, The Blues will hope to go one better in reaching the final, with a well-balanced squad mixed with experience and emerging talents. With seven players having already made over 100 appearances, goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi could celebrate reaching the milestone while in Canada.
At the other end of the pitch all eyes will be on striker Marie-Laure Delie who has a massive 58 goals in 86 appearances for her national side, as well as 41 goals in 42 appearances for PSG over the last two seasons.
Many would consider it a disappointment if the French did not reach the closing stages of the tournament, and with the next World Cup being hosted on home soil, the team will relish the chance to defend the title in front of their home supporters.
Mexico
World ranking: 25th
Nickname: The Tricolor
Previous best: Group Stage (1999, 2011)
Mexico caused an unthinkable upset over the United States in qualifying for the tournament four years ago, and have proved they are able to beat anyone on their day. With this in mind, the Tricolour will be hoping to put pressure on the likes of France and England, despite the fact their more recent appearances against some of the world’s better sides have been sub-standard. After scraping through qualification this time round to reach Group F, their opening fixture against Colombia will be pivotal, and could shape their campaign.
Yet to win a game in the World Cup finals, Mexico will hope to recreate their recent form of the Cyprus Cup, in which they dominated their group before beating Italy late on to secure third place. With just two defeats in their last ten fixtures – to Canada and the United States– Mexico will hope the explosive attacking duo of Mónica Ocampo and Charlyn Corral can help them progress through the group stages for the first time in their history.
The squad also boasts the youngster player in Group F, with goalkeeper Emily Alvarado being called up to the national side at just 16-years-old.
