MIAMI, Florida – The road to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand via the Concacaf region begins on Wednesday with the start of Concacaf WQualification.
All six groups will kick off with 30 teams hoping to reach the 2022 Concacaf W Championship this July in Monterrey, Mexico.
Group A begins with Puerto Rico hosting Antigua and Barbuda in a battle of Caribbean sides.
The Boricuas will be led by legendary FW Karina Socarras, who is the all-time leader in goals and appearances for the Puerto Rican Women’s National Team.
As for Antigua and Barbuda, they arrive into the encounter with plenty of confidence after a pair of friendly wins last week against the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Benna Girls won 4-0 and 2-1, with Gabrielle De Suza accounting for three goals, while Kai Jacobs, Monica Bird and Jahira James also found the back of the net.
The USVI will aim to shake off those two tough defeats in their Group B opener at Guatemala. The USVI showed great improvement in the second match against Antigua and Barbuda, with Leah Rapuano scoring a goal that should provide a lift ahead of the battle with the Chapines.
Guatemala’s Andrea Alvarez is one of the young stars in the Concacaf region and already a proven goalscorer at the international level. The 19-year-old will be a key piece if Guatemala are to get off to a good start.
It will be imperative for either the Dominican Republic or Grenada to get off to a winning start in Group C when they meet on Wednesday, since 2019 FIFA WWC side Jamaica are also in the group.
Roneisha Frank and Melania Fullerton are two young players to watch for Grenada, while the Dominican Republic will be relying on the likes of experienced MF Johanna Santelis, who has played more WCQs for the Dominican Republic than any other player.
El Salvador will be looking to start off the W Qualifiers on the right foot when they host Belize to begin Group D. Head Coach Eric Acuna will look to Alianza Women’s player Brenda Ceren as the source of goals, while Jayda Brown is a pacy, goalscoring threat for Belize.
Cuba reached the Concacaf W Championship in 2018 and are looking to make a return trip, starting with their first match in Group E against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
Yoana Calderon is an up-and-coming attacker for the Cubans, while the offense for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines runs through the feet of central midfielder Jessica Miller.
Rounding out the day’s action will be Guyana meeting Dominica in the opening match of Group F. Dominica have been training for the last 12 weeks under the watchful eye of Head Coach Albert Titre, with captain Kira Bertrand the leader on the field.
Meanwhile, Guyana will counter with the majority of the squad that scored eight goals in qualifying for the 2018 Concacaf W Championship.
