Update: Spain will play England in the final after the Lionesses took out Australia in the semifinal round.
Spain is headed to the 2023 women’s World Cup Final. La Roja beat Sweden 2-1 in their semifinal match to advance. They’ll face the winner of England vs. Australia in the Final on August 20 in Sydney. This is Spain’s first trip to the Final, and in fact, their first time advancing beyond the Round of 16.
The semifinal match was scoreless through the first 80 minutes before a flurry of activity late. Spain’s Salma Paralluelo broke it open with a goal in the 81st minute. Rebecka Blomqvist tied it up in the 88th minute and it looked like we were headed to extra time. However, a minute later, Olga Carmona stunned Sweden with an 89th minute goal to secure advancement.
This will mark the first World Cup match between Spain and either of the two opponents. They have played Australia once this century, winning 7-0 in an international friendly a year ago. They’ve played England ten times since 2007, including a pair of UEFA World Cup qualifiers in 2010. They are 3-3-4 in those ten matches, including a 1-1-1 split over the last three matches — all of which were friendlies.