Spain Opens As Betting Favorites To Win 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup
For the first time since 2011, a country besides the United States is the Women’s World Cup champion. On Sunday, the Spanish national squad edged England out for a 1-0 win in front of a sold-out crowd at Stadium Australia. Moments after hoisting the trophy, oddsmakers revealed that Spain is favored to win the 2027 Women’s World Cup, at +400 odds.
England and the USA are not too far behind Spain, as they share the second-best odds to win it all in 2027. With +500 odds, oddsmakers don’t have as much confidence in the USA as in previous years. The American women were clear favorites to win the 2023 World Cup.
Alex Morgan and company had +225 odds to win this year. However, a Round of 16 loss to Sweden sent the USWNT home early. The USA was seeking a ‘three-peat’ following World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019. With other countries improving their women’s soccer programs in recent years, the US has work to do over the next four years.
If you believe that Spain is going to be a one-hit wonder, then you might want to reconsider. A year before winning the 2023 Women’s World Cup, the Spaniards captured the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica.
Last year, Spain defeated Japan to win the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup by a final score of 3-1. 20-year-old Inma Gabarro led the U-20 event in scoring, but she didn’t make the 2023 Women’s World Cup squad.
It isn’t a reflection of Gabarro being a poor player, but rather the depth and young talent that Spain possesses. In four years, Gabarro could be part of what is still expected to be a youthful core for Spain.
A goal that Olga Carmona will never forget 👏👏
Spain takes the lead in the first half of the Final 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/NiMRCF0qX4
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) August 20, 2023
Olga Carmona, who scored the lone goal of the Women’s World Cup final, is only 23 years old. She is expected to be a major contributor in four years. By then, 19-year-old Salma Paralluelo is expected to take the reins of the Spanish national team.
Youngest Women’s World Cup Final Roster In Over 25 Years
Despite being the youngest player on the squad, Paralluelo was one of the most impactful players at the 2023 Women’s World Cup. In seven matches, she logged 459 minutes and scored two goals for Spain.
She is only the second teenager in Women’s World Cup history to score a goal in the semifinals. The Barça star brought home the FIFA Best Young Player Award at the Women’s World Cup. Expect her game on the pitch to continue to elevate in the coming years.
No surprise here 🇪🇸👏
Spain's Salma Paralluelo wins the FIFA Best Young Player Award 🏆 pic.twitter.com/8Nt9PvDjUr
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) August 20, 2023
Alba Redondo, Aitana Bonmati, and Jennifer Hermoso led Spain in scoring with three goals each. While Hermoso is the oldest member of the squad at 33, Bonmati and Redondo will be 29 and 30 in 2027.
With an average age of 25.3 years, Spain became the youngest team since 1995 to reach the Women’s World Cup final. Germany and Norway are the only squads to field a younger roster.
Currently, Norway is the youngest team to win the Women’s World Cup, with Spain following closely behind as the second youngest. The main point to take away from this is that Spain will be a major threat four years from now.
With this in mind, Spain’s 2027 Women’s World Series odds make plenty of sense. This squad deserves to be favored to win it again at the next World Cup. This is unlike the American core, which is considerably older than Spain.
38-year-old Megan Rapinoe has played her last World Cup. Morgan will be 38, while Julie Ertz retired after the loss to Sweden. Additionally, Carli Lloyd retired two years ago after years of success with the USWNT.
Last year, Lloyd was critical of the women’s national team culture. As a member of the Fox broadcast team, the two-time World Cup winner continued her criticism of the team during the 2023 Women’s World Cup. Following the discouraging performance at the tournament, manager Vlatko Andonovski resigned.
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Jorge Vilda’s Manager Job In Peril
Andonovski retired from the USWNT due to a lack of results. The culture was failing in the locker room, and it spilled over to the pitch for the Americans. However, Jorge Vilda just won the Women’s Cup and could be out as the bench boss.
In spite of fans and players with disdain for Vilda, he was still able to become a world champion. Vilda’s decision-making on the pitch helped lead Spain to a World Cup title. That said, he wasn’t making any friends behind closed doors.
Jorge Vilda is booed by the crowd once more as he gets his medal.
But these #ESP players are exceptional, and deserve to celebrate. #ESP#FIFAWWC#BeyondGreatnesspic.twitter.com/zu4eQMdHZv
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@thegoalkeeper) August 20, 2023
“I’ve always said that if all the suffering was necessary to become world champions, it would be worth it,”said Vilda to reporters. “It’s been difficult at a personal level in management, but on a sporting level, we’ve achieved results that we’ve never achieved before.”
There are a multitude of reasons for the complaints. In September 2022, 15 players contacted the Royal Spanish Football Federation requesting that they are not called up to the national team, referencing a lack of professionalism that had an “important effect on my emotional state and by extension my health”.
At the 2023 Women’s World Cup, players were reportedly complaining about the coaching staff forcing the team to leave their hotel doors open until midnight. Moreover, players had their bags searched after leaving on excursions during team camp.
The Federation was under pressure to part ways with Vilda well before the team arrived in Australia, but they ultimately rebuffed the criticism. We will monitor what transpires over the next year. Nevertheless, with or without Vilda, Spain appears like the team to beat in 2027.
