England's Women's World Cup 2027 aspirations now hinge on a two-round play-off challenge, with the Lionesses set to face Greece in their opening fixture this October. The draw, made on Thursday, outlines a demanding path for Sarina Wiegman's squad, who must emerge victorious from both home and away ties to secure their place in the finals, hosted in Brazil.
Should England overcome Greece, their next opponent will be the winner of the match between Slovakia and Ukraine. The Lionesses, alongside the Republic of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, have the advantage of playing their potential second-leg ties on home soil, a factor that could prove crucial in these high-stakes encounters. Northern Ireland, however, will face an away trip for their second match if they progress.
England narrowly missed out on automatic qualification despite a strong showing in their group, winning five of their six matches. However, reigning champions Spain ultimately topped the group, securing direct passage to the tournament. A 3-0 victory over Ukraine in their final group game was insufficient to displace Spain, who had previously inflicted a 4-0 defeat on England, despite the Lionesses winning their first qualifier against Spain 1-0 in April.
The play-offs are designed to determine seven of the eight remaining UEFA places for the World Cup. The final European spot will be decided through an inter-confederation play-off. Other home nations also learned their routes: the Republic of Ireland will play Kazakhstan, Wales face Albania, Scotland are drawn against the Czech Republic, and Northern Ireland will take on Portugal.
Sarina Wiegman, the England manager, acknowledged the challenge ahead: “We knew what the play-offs would look like and, while we’re pleased with the draw against Greece, the focus now is on making sure we’re really well prepared.” She added, “We want to dominate games and have a lot of the ball, and that’s something we will prepare for carefully.” The first round of play-off matches is scheduled for October, with the second round following in November and December. Specific fixture dates are yet to be announced.
The seven best-ranked winners from the second round of the play-offs will qualify directly for the 2027 finals. The remaining winner will still have a chance to qualify through the inter-confederation play-off, with European teams entering the second round of that tournament in February 2027.