The ninth edition of the Fifa Women's World Cup kicked off on July 20 with joint hosts New Zealand and Australia opening with wins.
The 32-team tournament is the biggest event in female football history.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2023 Women's World Cup.
What is it?
The Fifa Women's World Cup is an international football tournament hosted every four years and involves national teams from around the world. The 2023 edition will feature 32 teams, making it the largest tournament in women's football history, having expanded from 24 teams.
Where is it?
The 2023 tournament will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. It is the first time the Women's World Cup has had more than one host nation. It is also the first time any World Cup, female or male, has been co-hosted by two nations from different federations. Australia is part of the Asian Football Federation, while New Zealand is in the Oceania Football Confederation.
What are the dates?
The 2023 Women's World Cup will begin on July 20 with the opening match between hosts New Zealand and Norway at Eden Park, Auckland. The final will take place on August 20 and will be held at Stadium Australia in Sydney Olympic Park.
What is the format?
Given the expansion of the tournament to 32 teams, the format will be the same as the men's 32-team World Cups (until that changes in 2026 with its latest expansion). There will be eight groups comprising four teams each, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout rounds, starting with the Round of 16. In all there will be 64 matches played at the 2023 tournament.
What are the venues?
There are 10 stadiums which will host matches at the 2023 Women's World Cup, six in Australia and four in New Zealand. The stadiums in Australia are: Stadium Australia and Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Brisbane's Lang Park, the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, the Perth Rectangular Stadium, and Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide.
In New Zealand, Auckland's Eden Park, the Wellington Regional Stadium, Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium, and the Waikato Stadium in Hamilton will stage games.
Stadium Australia is by far the largest stadium at this World Cup, with a capacity of 83,500. The next biggest is Lang Park with a capacity of 52,263.
Which teams are playing?
Group A: New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Switzerland
Group B: Australia Republic of Ireland, Nigeria, Canada
Group C: Spain, Costa Rica, Zambia, Japan
Group D: England, Haiti, Denmark, China
Group E: United States, Vietnam, Netherlands, Portugal
Group F: France, Jamaica, Brazil, Panama
Group G: Sweden, South Africa, Italy, Argentina
Group H: Germany, Morocco, Colombia, South Korea
Results
July 20: New Zealand 1-0 Norway | Australia 1-0 Republic of Ireland
July 21: Nigeria 0-0 Canada | Philippines 0-2 Switzerland | Spain 3-0 Costa Rica
July 22: USA 3-0 Vietnam | Zambia 0-5 Japan | England 1-0 Haiti | Denmark 1-0 China
July 23: Sweden 2-1 South Africa | Netherlands 1-0 Portugal | France 0-0 Jamaica
July 24: Italy 1-0 Argentina | Germany 6-0 Morocco | Brazil 4-0 Panama
July 25: Colombia 2-0 South Korea | New Zealand 0-1 Philippines | Switzerland 0-0 Norway
July 26: Japan 2-0 Costa Rica | Spain 5-0 Zambia | Canada 2-1 Republic of Ireland
July 27: USA 1-1 Netherlands | Portugal 2-0 Vietnam | Australia 2-3 Nigeria
July 28: Argentina 2-2 South Africa | England 1-0 Denmark | China 1-0 Haiti
July 29: Sweden 5-0 Italy | France 2-1 Brazil | Panama 0-1 Jamaica
July 30: South Korea 0-1 Morocco | Norway 6-0 Philippines | Switzerland 0-0 New Zealand | Germany 1-2 Colombia
July 31: Japan 4-0 Spain | Costa Rica 1-3 Zambia | Republic of Ireland v Nigeria | Canada v Australia
August 1: Vietnam 0-7 Netherlands | Portugal 0-0 USA | China v England | Haiti v Denmark
August 2: Argentina 0-2 Sweden | South Africa 3-2 Italy | Panama 3-6 France | Jamaica 0-0 Brazil
August 3: Morocco 1-0 Colombia | Germany 1-1 South Korea
Last 16
August 5: Switzerland 1 Spain 5 | Japan 3 Norway 1
August 6: Netherlands 2-0 South Africa | Sweden 0(5)-0(4) USA
August 7: England 0(4)-0(2) Nigeria | Australia 2-0 Denmark
August 8: Colombia 1-0 Jamaica | France 4-0 Morocco
Quarter-finals
August 11: Spain 2-1 Netherlands | Japan 1-2 Sweden
Which teams are title contenders?
The United States are considered the leading contenders to win the tournament and successfully defend their title. They are the most successful team in Women's World Cup history having won four of the eight previous editions, including at France 2019 when they defeated the Netherlands 2-0 in the final.
However, the US are expected to face stiff competition from European champions England, although the Lionesses will be without three key players – Fran Kirby, Beth Mead and Leah Williamson – due to injury. Meanwhile Spain, Germany, France, Sweden, and the Netherlands have title ambitions of their own, and co-hosts Australia are being backed to have a successful tournament.
What is the prize money?
Fifa has increased the total prize pool from $80 million in 2019 to $110m in 2023, distributing prize money to both participating member associations and to players.
For teams who finish in the group stage, their allocation is $1.56m; Round of 16 teams get $1.87m; quarter-finalists will receive $2.18m; the fourth-placed team gets $2.455m; third place $2.61m; runners-up $3.015m, and the champions $4.29m.
The player allocation will be: $30,000 for each player whose teams are eliminated in the group stage; $60,000 at the Round of 16; $90,000 for the quarter-finalists; $165,000 for fourth place; $180,000 for third place; $195,000 for the runners-up; and $270,000 for the champions.
Where to watch the tournament?
The 2023 Women's World Cup will be broadcast in the UAE and throughout the Mena region on beIN Sports.
For more information about the tournament and the complete schedule, visit the Fifa Women's World Cup website.
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
Major matches on Manic Monday
Andy Murray (GBR) v Benoit Paire (FRA)
Grigor Dimitrov (BGR) v Roger Federer (SUI)
Rafael Nadal (ESP) v Gilles Muller (LUX)
Adrian Mannarino (FRA) Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
Have the ability to differentiate yourself from competitors
Put in place a business continuity plan after Covid-19
Prepare for the worst-case scenario (further lockdowns, long wait for a vaccine, etc.)
Have enough cash to stay afloat for the next 12 to 18 months
Be creative and innovative to reduce expenses
Be prepared to use Covid-19 as an opportunity for your business
* Tips from Jassim Al Marzooqi and Walid Hanna
Company%20Profile
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The Bio
Favourite holiday destination: Either Kazakhstan or Montenegro. I’ve been involved in events in both countries and they are just stunning.
Favourite book: I am a huge of Robin Cook’s medical thrillers, which I suppose is quite apt right now. My mother introduced me to them back home in New Zealand.
Favourite film or television programme: Forrest Gump is my favourite film, that’s never been up for debate. I love watching repeats of Mash as well.
Inspiration: My late father moulded me into the man I am today. I would also say disappointment and sadness are great motivators. There are times when events have brought me to my knees but it has also made me determined not to let them get the better of me.
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Brief scoreline:
Wolves 3
Neves 28', Doherty 37', Jota 45' 2
Arsenal 1
Papastathopoulos 80'
Iran's dirty tricks to dodge sanctions
There’s increased scrutiny on the tricks being used to keep commodities flowing to and from blacklisted countries. Here’s a description of how some work.
1 Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil with stealth is to turn off the Automatic Identification System, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later, masking the location of its load or discharge port.
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight. The vessels will then sail in different directions. For about a third of Iranian exports, more than one tanker typically handles a load before it’s delivered to its final destination, analysts say.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload is another technique. Ships that intend to take cargo from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free places like Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them.
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. The countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar characteristics. Oil from these deposits can be trucked out to another port and documents forged to hide Iran as the origin.
* Bloomberg
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
Race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-2 Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 2,200m
6.30pm: Liwa Oaisi Group 2 (PA) Dh300,000 1,400m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m
The National selections: 5pm: Flit Al Maury, 5.30pm: Sadah, 6pm: RB Seqondtonone, 6.30pm: RB Money To Burn, 7pm: SS Jalmood, 7.30pm: Dalaalaat
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Frida%20
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Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
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Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory