Group C will open their group stage with Spain facing off against Costa Rica early Friday morning in 2023 FIFA women’s World Cup action. Kickoff is set for 3:30 a.m. ET from Wellington Regional Stadium in New Zealand. You can catch all the action on FS1 or via livestream on foxsports.com and the Fox Sports App.
Here’s everything you need to know for the match, along with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Spain v. Costa Rica
Date: Friday, July 21
Time: 3:30 a.m. ET
TV Channel: FS1, Telemundo
Live stream: Foxsports.com, Fox Sports App
Odds, picks & predictions
Spain: -20000
Draw: +3000
Costa Rica: +5500
Moneyline pick: Spain -20000
Spain are heavily favored to come out on top in this one as they’re one of the favorites heading into this year’s tournament. Armed with stars like Alexia Putellas, Aitana Bonmati, and Jennifer Hermoso, they boast some of the best players in the women’s game anywhere in the world and won’t be easy to beat. The majority of their squad plays for either Real Madrid or Barcelona, with Putellas scoring 126 goals for Barca throughout the last decade. She’s also notched 28 goals for her national team, coming into the WWC as one of the top players in the tournament.
Costa Rica is making just their second appearance at the women’s World Cup, with their first trip coming in 2015. Both sides were drawn into Group E in that tournament, with their lone match against each other ending in a 1-1 draw. Somewhat surprisingly, Costa Rica finished ahead of Spain with two points, though they both went home after the group stage without logging a single win.
Spain looks like a different team this many years later and should have no trouble taking care of business against Costa Rica in their opener. Although as we know, anything can happen especially in a World Cup scenario, so playing Costa Rica at +5500 might actually be worth it just in case they pull off a massive upset. But if you’re looking to play it safe, take Spain to get the win.