Eight stadiums to host 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil

Eight stadiums in Brazil will host the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup. All the stadiums have hosted matches during the 2014 FIFA Men’s World Cup.

The tournament will run from June 24 to July 25, 2027. This will be the first time the FIFA Women’s World Cup takes place in South America.

The eight stadiums include Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro, Estádio Nacional in Brasília, Estádio Mineirão in Belo Horizonte, Arena Castelão in Fortaleza, Estádio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre, Arena Itaquera in São Paulo, Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador, and Arena de Pernambuco in Recife. FIFA announced the venues on Friday.

The Maracanã will play a key role. It will host the opening match featuring Brazil on June 24, along with the final on July 25.

The famous Rio de Janeiro stadium will also hold a quarter-final and a semi-final. São Paulo’s Arena Itaquera will host a quarter-final, a semi-final, and the third-place match.

All eight host cities will hold all 64 matches of the 32-team tournament. Each city will have at least seven games and at least one knockout match.

Brasília, Porto Alegre, Recife, and Salvador will host matches through the round of 16. Belo Horizonte and Fortaleza will also have quarter-final matches.

For Nigerian football fans, the Estádio Beira-Rio brings back memories. The Porto Alegre stadium hosted Nigeria’s 3-2 loss to Argentina in the group stage of the 2014 Men’s World Cup.

FIFA lists this match among five games played at Beira-Rio during that tournament. Now, the stadium will welcome the best women’s national teams when Brazil hosts the 2027 tournament.

The Maracanã has a rich World Cup history. It hosted the 2014 men’s final between Germany and Argentina. It will now be only the third stadium to host both a men’s FIFA World Cup final and a Women’s World Cup final, joining Råsunda Stadium in Sweden and the Rose Bowl in the United States.

Other venues also have memorable moments from 2014. Mineirão hosted the 2014 semi-final where Germany beat Brazil 7-1. Arena Castelão was where Brazil won against Colombia in the quarter-finals.

Arena Fonte Nova had six matches in the 2014 tournament, including Spain’s defeat by the Netherlands. Arena Pernambuco hosted five matches.

Estádio Nacional in Brasília held seven matches in the 2014 World Cup, including the third-place play-off between Brazil and the Netherlands. Arena Itaquera hosted the opening match between Brazil and Croatia and a semi-final between Argentina and the Netherlands.

These venues will set the stage for the 10th edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Brazil will welcome 32 teams from six confederations.

This tournament will also allow Brazil to showcase women’s football across eight cities, ending at the historic Maracanã.

Sadly, the Super Falcons will not participate in the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. They missed out on one of Africa’s qualification spots at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations after losing 2, 1 to South Africa in the play-off.

Out of the 12 stadiums used in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, four were not chosen for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. They are Arena Pantanal in Cuiabá, Arena da Amazônia in Manaus, Arena das Dunas in Natal, and Arena da Baixada in Curitiba.