The race for the final three places at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 will move forward on 20 August, when FIFA stages the draw for the preliminary phase of the inter-confederation play-offs in Zurich.
The draw will take place at FIFA’s headquarters in Switzerland from 14:00 local time. It will determine how six teams from four confederations are arranged for the opening stage of the play-off tournament, with South Africa and Ghana representing Africa.
The six participating nations are Chinese Taipei and Uzbekistan from the AFC, South Africa and Ghana from the CAF, Ecuador from CONMEBOL, and Papua New Guinea from the OFC.
FIFA has placed the teams into three pots according to the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking published on 16 June 2026.
Chinese Taipei and Uzbekistan are in Pot 1. South Africa and Papua New Guinea make up Pot 2, while Ghana and Ecuador are in Pot 3.
One key restriction will apply during the draw: teams from the same confederation cannot be drawn against one another.
The preliminary phase will be played during the international window from 24 November to 5 December 2026. The six teams will be allocated across nine fixtures determined by the draw procedure, with each side playing three matches.
At the end of that stage, only the two teams finishing highest in the standings will progress to the final phase of the play-offs. South Africa and Ghana therefore need to finish among those leading two nations, with any dropped points potentially making their route to the tournament in Brazil more difficult.
Final phase will decide last three places
The final phase will feature six teams. The two qualifiers from the preliminary stage will be joined by four nations that enter the competition at that point: two representatives from Concacaf, Venezuela from CONMEBOL and one team from UEFA.
Those six teams will be divided into three knockout paths. The winner of each path will secure one of the final three places at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027.
The final phase is scheduled for the international window between 23 February and 6 March 2027. It will provide the last opportunity for the competing nations to qualify for the tournament.
The Zurich event will also reveal the match schedule for the World Cup itself. FIFA will announce the calendar during the same ceremony, ahead of the competition being staged in Brazil from 24 June to 25 July 2027.
The tournament will be the 10th edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and will be historic as the first edition to take place in South America.
For South Africa and Ghana, the 20 August draw will mark the beginning of a potentially long campaign to reach Brazil. Before either can compete for one of the final World Cup places, both must first negotiate the preliminary phase and finish in the top two.
