2023 Women's World Cup upsets show sport's growth, closed gaps - ESPN

SYDNEY — If there's a catchphrase that sums up the 2023 Women's World Cup, it's one you've probably been hearing since the opening round of games: The gap is closing.

What does that mean? In short, the difference in quality between the top-ranked teams in the tournament and the lowest-ranked teams has gotten smaller and smaller. As a result, we've been treated to a Women's World Cup that is far more exciting, more competitive and more unpredictable than ever before.

Some of the strongest evidence that women's soccer is growing, of course, came at the expense of the back-to-back champion U.S. women's national team, which got knocked out in the round of 16 after a sputtering group stage. Before this tournament, the U.S. had never failed to reach a semifinal in a Women's World Cup, and the team won the trophy in 2015 and 2019.

Other powerhouses crumbled too, making room for lower-ranked teams. No. 2-ranked Germany, No. 7-ranked Canada and No. 8-ranked Brazil all got knocked out in the group stage, thanks to a slew of upsets and tight matches. Morocco, one of eight tournament debutants in this first 32-team format, reached the round of 16.

There's plenty more. Look no further than 40th-ranked Nigeria beating 10th-ranked Australia in the group stage — a genuinely stunning upset. How about 54th-ranked South Africa beating 16th-ranked Italy, or 77th-ranked Zambia beating 36th-ranked Costa Rica? No one would've expected the 46th-ranked Philippines, in the country's first-ever World Cup, to beat 26th-ranked co-host New Zealand in the group stage.

If these upsets make it seem as if FIFA's world rankings are wrong, that's not really the case. There are ongoing debates about the best way to rank teams — including whether there are