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[1/3]Soccer Football – FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 – Round of 16 – England v Nigeria – Brisbane Football Stadium, Brisbane, Australia – August 7, 2023 England’s Rachel Daly and Georgia Stanway celebrate during the penalty shootout REUTERS/Dan Peled
SYDNEY, Aug 9 (Reuters) – Few could have predicted the eight teams still standing when the Women’s World Cup kicked off three weeks – and more surprisingly, the teams who are gone.
In the most wide open World Cup in history, Colombia and France were the last two teams to clinch quarter-final berths Tuesday evening, joining Spain, the Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Australia and England to close the curtain on a breathtaking first two rounds full of delicious twists and turns.
When the tournament was expanded to 32 teams, there was apprehension around whether lower-ranked sides could compete at this level. But the…