Iran Press/ Asia: Held in the Oceanic regions of Australia and New Zealand, the competition is scheduled to run from July 20 through to the final exactly a month later on August 20.
It has been a rapid expansion for a tournament that started in 1991 and featured only 16 teams as recently as 2011, then 24 in France four years ago when the USA retained the trophy.
That reflects a dramatic rise in interest in women's football over the last decade beyond its traditional heartland of the United States, and a swarm of European sides will be aiming to snatch their title.
Australia, led by the prolific Chelsea forward Sam Kerr, will hope to make the most of home advantage and go all the way to the final in Sydney on August 20.
The World Cup is not just bigger in terms of the number of competing nations.
FIFA has tripled the prize money compared with 2019 and the total pot, which also covers compensation for clubs releasing players, is up from $50 million four years ago to $152 million.
It is a vast hike on the $15 million offered in 2015, and confirmation that it is a boom time for women's football.
Women's World Cup groups
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