England’s road to the 2027 World Cup: Key dates, draw details and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying | OneFootball

England’s road to the 2027 World Cup: Key dates, draw details and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying | OneFootball

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She Kicks Magazine

·22 October 2025

England’s road to the 2027 World Cup: Key dates, draw details and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying

Article image:England’s road to the 2027 World Cup: Key dates, draw details and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying
Article image:England’s road to the 2027 World Cup: Key dates, draw details and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying

England turn their attentions to preparing for 2027 Women’s World Cup this week after their success at Euro 2025

European champions England begin their preparation for the 2027 Women’s World Cup this week, and here SheKicks reveals all the key dates and who the Lionesses could face in qualifying.


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When is the qualification draw for the 2027 Women’s World Cup?

England and the rest of Europe will discover who they will face in qualification for the 2027 Women’s World Cup on Tuesday, November 4th.

The European qualifiers will see 11 nations progress to the 32-team tournament in Brazil.

Another place could be made available for a European nation via the intercontinental playoffs.

In 2023, England won their group, which included Austria, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg, North Macedonia and Latvia.

However, the qualifying format has changed ahead of the 2027.

World Cup qualifying then gets underway in 2026.

How does the draw work?

European qualifying sees teams drawn into groups within three different leagues. The leagues are determined on the results of the 2025 Women’s Nations League.

England are in League A which also includes the likes of Spain, Germany and France.

Scotland and Wales are in League B, while Northern Ireland face a playoff against Iceland which will decide whether they will be placed in League A or B.

The four group winners in League A will qualify for the Women’s World Cup.

Teams finishing second to fourth in the four League A groups will join 12 teams from League B and six teams from League C in the two-round playoffs, which begin in October 2026.

Which teams could England face in World Cup qualifying?

England will face three other teams home and away in a group consisting of League A teams.

Other teams in League A include France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands, Italy, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Serbia and Ukraine.

They will be joined by the winners of the following four playoff ties;

  • Northern Ireland vs Iceland
  • Finland vs Denmark
  • Republic of Ireland vs Belgium
  • Czech Republic vs Austria

Key dates on road to 2027 Women’s World Cup

  • World Cup European qualifying draw – November 4th, 2025
  • Matchdays 1 and 2 – 26th February – March 7th, 2026
  • Matchdays 3 and 4 – April 9th – April 18th, 2026
  • Matchdays 5 and 6 – June 3rd – June 9th, 2026
  • Playoff draw – June 22nd, 2026
  • Round 1 – October 7th – October 13th, 2026
  • Round 2 – November 26th – December 5th, 2026
  • Inter-conferation playoffs – February 2027 (Date TBC)
  • 2027 World Cup draw – Date TBC

England’s upcoming friendlies

England have four friendlies to play by the end of 2025.

The Lionesses face Brazil on October 25th and Australia three days later during the current international break.

Wiegman has announced her squad, which has been forced into several changes. Most recently, Jess Park was replaced after pulling out with concussion symptoms.

Sarina Wiegman’s side also face China on November 29th and Ghana on December 2nd.

Should England finish top of their World Cup qualifying group, they will likely organise more friendlies when the playoffs take place towards the end of 2026.

When and where is the 2027 Women’s World Cup?

Brazil will host the Women’s World Cup for the first time in 2027, with the tournament set to take place between June 24th and July 25th that year.

FIFA announced eight host cities for the tournament, and the respective stadiums in which they will host matches.

  1. Belo Horizonte – Estadio Mineirao
  2. Brasilia – Estadio Nacional
  3. Fortaleza – Arena Castelao
  4. Porto Alegre – Estadio Beira-Rio
  5. Recife – Arena de Pernambuco
  6. Rio de Janeiro – Estadio do Maracana
  7. Salvador – Arena Fonte Nova
  8. Sao Paulo – Arena Itaquera
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