The ongoing Women's World Cup has proven to be nothing short of exciting, as co-host Australia proudly announces a groundbreaking achievement of selling over 1.5 million tickets, setting a record for the tournament. So far, teams have had ups & downs - and in Norway’s case, both - and in this summary, we will provide an overview of what has happened so far and share some valuable betting tips supported by the high odds available on BetKing. **THE GOOD** **Linda Caicedo & Colombia** Linda Caicedo's journey has been the most heartwarming tale of the tournament so far, and it's going to be difficult to surpass it. Having made a very promising start to her footballing career by making her professional and senior debut at 15, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer months later. Enduring a grueling recovery process, she has emerged as one of the most promising young players globally and has been a key driving force behind Colombia's exceptional performance in this tournament. Now 18 years old and playing for Real Madrid, she has achieved an extraordinary feat by scoring in three different World Cups within the last 12 months: the U17 World Cup, U20 World Cup, and now the senior World Cup. In this tournament, Caicedo has netted two goals, and her second goal against Germany is already being hailed as a top contender for the Goal of the Tournament award. **Hervé Renard** France has not yet secured their spot in the Round of 16, but it is worth highlighting the remarkable achievement of newly appointed manager, Hervé Renard. He made history by becoming the first manager to win games at both the Men's and Women's World Cups. Prior to leading the French team, he had already achieved a stunning 2-1 victory with Saudi Arabia over Argentina in the 2022 Men’s World Cup. Although France's performance has not been entirely convincing, with a goalless draw against Jamaica and a narrow win over Brazil, they are still on track to win Group F as predicted. **Super Falcons** The Super Falcons of Nigeria secured their spot in the Round of 16 by finishing 2nd in Group B. This achievement marks a historic moment for the nation as they advanced past the group stage without a single loss, boasting an impressive record of 2 clean sheets in 3 games. The highlight of their tournament came in the stunning 3-2 victory over co-hosts Australia as goals from Uchenna Kanu, Osinachi Ohale and star player, Asisat Oshoala gave the Falcons all 3 points, leaving the home side stunned. On a personal level, Onome Ebi achieved a remarkable milestone by becoming the first African footballer to take part in six World Cups. She made history during the 3-2 win, coming on as a substitute. At 40 years and 80 days, Ebi is the second-oldest player ever to grace the FIFA World Cup, second only to Formiga, who achieved the feat at 41 years and 112 days. **Sweden** Sweden has met expectations by securing two wins in their first two games, ensuring their spot in the Round of 16. They achieved a 2-1 victory over South Africa and then dominated fellow Europeans, Italy, with an impressive 5-0 win. Amanda Ilestedt, the new Arsenal Center-back, has been the standout player, surprising many with her remarkable contribution of 3 goals, while Fridolina Rolfö, the winger from Barcelona Femeni, has scored twice. Having won the Silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, Sweden is expected to make a deep run in this tournament, and our bet of the day is for them to reach the semi-finals. @3.70, this presents an excellent opportunity for all online sports betting enthusiasts to make a profitable wager.
**Zambia… Sort Of** The Zambian ladies ended their World Cup campaign with a 3rd place finish in Group C. Nevertheless, they made history by securing their first-ever World Cup victory with a 3-1 win over Costa Rica. Lushomo Mweemba, Barbra Banda, and Racheal Kundananji scored the crucial goals in the match. Despite the team's early exit, [our readers who followed our bet prediction](https://m.betking.com/blog/news/picking-the-group-winners-for-the-women-s-world-cup/) of all Zambia’s games producing Over 2.5 goals came out as the biggest winners. Anticipating their vulnerable defense before the tournament, we foresaw high-scoring matches whenever the African debutants took the field, and they certainly lived up to that expectation as they suffered 5–0 losses to Japan and Spain before redeeming themselves with a 3-1 victory in their final game. **Japan** Japan has emerged as the standout team in the tournament, displaying near-flawless performances. With a perfect record of 3 wins from 3 games, they have showed exceptional prowess, scoring an impressive 11 goals while conceding none. They secured the top spot in Group C, surpassing a more fancied and talented Spanish team. Their campaign began with a commanding 5-0 victory against Zambia, followed by a solid 2-0 win over Costa Rica. However, it was their remarkable 4-0 triumph against Spain that truly set them apart. Despite possessing only 22% of the ball, and registering just 5 shots on target, Japan's well-executed counter-attacking strategy and clinical finishing left the Spaniards stunned as they cemented their position as group leaders. Hinata Miyazawa leads the Goals standings, having scored 4 goals, while Mina Tanaka contributed significantly with 3 assists and leads the Assists chart. Having won the 2011 World Cup, the Japanese team aspires to repeat that success in the current tournament. With odds of @9.50, we offer the best betting offer for those looking to place bets on this achievement across all betting sites.
**THE DISAPPOINTMENTS** **Norway’s Inconsistencies** Norway has secured a spot in the Round of 16, but their performance so far has been underwhelming. They suffered a surprising loss to New Zealand in their opener, marking one of the tournament's biggest upsets. Following that, they settled for a draw in their next match against Switzerland. However, they bounced back with a convincing 6-0 win over the Philippines, securing a second-place finish in the group. Despite Sophie Román Haug’s hat-trick for Norway in the 6-0 win, it was Vilde Bøe Risa’s inclusion in the starting lineup that has sparked life into the team. The midfielder has often found herself on the bench at Manchester United which has affected her place in the national team, but Hege Riise’s decision to start her after their opening day defeat has proven to be a stroke of genius. Initially, there were high hopes for Norway to top their group, but after witnessing their first three matches, caution should be exercised when betting on them to win as their inconsistency has raised doubts about their ability to compete against teams of similar quality in the upcoming stages of the tournament. **Canada** [As predicted last week](https://m.betking.com/blog/news/picking-the-group-winners-for-the-women-s-world-cup/), Canada faced a tough challenge heading into this tournament because of multiple injuries to key players, which left their squad depleted. Having won the Gold at the previous Olympics, there was a lot of optimism in the country when they secured their ticket to the World Cup. However, with the mounting injuries, doubts also grew, and it was not surprising to see them crash out in the group stages. One of the personal disappointments for the Canadians was Christine Sinclair's inability to score a goal in this tournament, which would have allowed her to set the remarkable record of scoring in 6 different World Cups. Sinclair had a golden opportunity to set the record in their opening game against Nigeria when they were awarded a penalty, but her effort was saved by the Nigerian goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie. This achievement would have taken her above Cristiano Ronaldo, with whom she currently shares the record of 5 World Cups. At 40-years-old, Sinclair has scored a record-breaking 190 international goals, making her the top scorer among both male and female professional players. Despite the individual setback, Sinclair's legacy as one of the greatest footballers of all time remains intact. **England’s Scoring** England is on the brink of making it to the Round of 16, thanks to two 1–0 victories in their opening matches. However, their lack of goals is a cause for concern. The absence of Beth Mead, who was their top scorer in EURO 2021, has weakened their attacking unit, and the recent injury to the world-class midfielder Keira Walsh has left a significant void in the midfield. Their most disappointing performance came in a 1-0 win against underdogs Haiti, a match that was expected to be won by at least three goals. Despite England being considered a formidable contender in this tournament, as showed by our odds of [7.00 for them to win it all](https://m.betking.com/sports/match/5348190/fifa-women-wc-winner-2023) (the third-best odds), we recommend exercising caution and considering a bet of under 2.5 goals in their matches until they address their current attacking issues. Their recent lack of goals and the absence of key players may impact their offensive performance, making low-scoring games more likely.