Beware the Portuguese in Pot 4. Ireland are confirmed third seeds ahead of the World Cup draw in Auckland on October 22nd.
Portugal will be fourth seeds, as they only secured a place in the Intercontinental playoffs next February by beating Iceland on Tuesday, despite being ranked 23rd, one place ahead of Vera Pauw’s Irish side in Fifa’s updated world rankings.
So, a nightmare draw remains possible with Olympic champions Canada in Pot 2 alongside the Netherlands, Brazil, Italy and 2011 champions Japan.
Leading Spanish players may be in open revolt against their federation and national manager Jorde Vilda, but this week’s 2-0 victory over world champions USA in Pamplona and a recent draw with number two ranked Sweden, sees them usurp the Netherlands as a top seed.
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Canada are also second seeds, as co-hosts New Zealand (22) open the tournament at Eden Park in Auckland on July 20th next year.
Fifa will not confirm kick-off times until October 22nd, after the draw, with pressure building for late starts so northern hemisphere nations, like Euros winners England, the US and Ireland, can maximise the television audience.
New Zealand should be in Pot 3 with Ireland but Pauw’s side will hardly complain, having leapt over Scotland to 24th following Tuesday’s historic 1-0 in at Hampden Park.
Meanwhile, Uefa have launched an investigation into the ‘Up The RA’ chants, broadcast from inside Ireland’s changing room by players’ Instagram Live feeds, despite the FAI’s repeated apology.
“In accordance with Article 31(4) of the UEFA disciplinary regulations, a UEFA ethics and disciplinary inspector will investigate potential inappropriate behaviour by players of the Republic of Ireland Women’s team in the aftermath of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifiers play-off second leg match played against Scotland on October 11, 2022,” read the Uefa statement. “Information on this matter will be made available in due course.”
The FAI have reiterated a lengthy apology delivered by Pauw on Wednesday morning. As a result, the coach and social media-muted players have been unable to fully embrace the plaudits for guiding Ireland to their first major tournament.
“The FAI again apologises for any offence caused and we will continue to review this situation accordingly to ensure that our international players and staff, across all of our teams, are aware of their responsibilities,” read a second official statement, 24 hours after the first.
In a now viral clip, Ireland player Chloe Mustaki needed to reject Sky Sports News anchor Rob Wotton’s suggestion that there is a “need for education on issues like this”, with the Bristol City full back replying: “We have all been brought up knowing a lot about Irish history. We must need to be better in moments like this, and we recognise that absolutely on our end.”
Fifa ranking in brackets
Pot 1: New Zealand (22), Australia (13), USA (1), Sweden (2), Germany (3), England (4), France (5), Spain (6).
Pot 2: Canada (7), The Netherlands (8), Brazil (9), Japan (11), Norway (12), Italy (14), China (15), South Korea (17).
Pot 3: Denmark (18), Switzerland (21), Republic of Ireland (24), Colombia (27), Argentina (29), Vietnam (34), Costa Rica (37), Jamaica (43).
Pot 4: Portugal (23), Nigeria (45), Philippines (53), South Africa (54), Morocco (76), Zambia (81), TBC, TBC.
