Football Football Women's World Cup: Everything you need to know We take an in-depth look at everything you need to know about this year's Women's World Cup, which begins on Friday. Chelsea Howard 06 June, 2019 16:21 IST Women's World Cup trophy 2019 - Getty Images Chelsea Howard 06 June, 2019 16:21 IST The eighth edition of the Women's World Cup begins on Friday when hosts France face South Korea at the Parc des Princes. There will be 24 teams in France with seven – Brazil, Germany, Japan, Nigeria, Norway, Sweden and the United States – having participated in every World Cup so far, while four nations – Chile, Jamaica, Scotland and South Africa – are making their debuts. We take an in-depth look at everything you need to know about this year's World Cup.READ | The Munitionnettes in a man's world: A history of women's football When does it take place? Beginning on Friday, the tournament lasts exactly a month with the final on July 7. The group stages will feature six pools of four teams and the winner and runner-up of each group will automatically make it to the round of 16. In addition, the four best third-placed teams will also advance to the knockout stages. Where will it be played? This year's competition will be held in France for the first time and will be played across nine different venues in Paris, Reims, Grenoble, Rennes, Valenciennes, Montpellier, Nice, Le Havre and Lyon. Seven of the nine venues will host at least three group-stage games, with Lyon's 59,186-seater stadium staging both last-four contests and the final. Who are the favourites? USA are bidding for a fourth title and Jill Ellis' defending champions enter the tournament as favourites to win, four years after beating Japan 5-2 in the 2015 final. The Americans could face major challenges, though, especially when it comes to hosts France. Les Bleues could face USA in the quarter-finals if they both make it out of the group stages. Germany are also considered among the contenders. During qualifying, Germany racked up an impressive 38 goals and conceded just three times. Which country has won the most World Cup titles? In the seven previous tournaments, just four countries have won titles. Three of those have been won by USA, while Germany have lifted the trophy twice and Japan and Norway have one title each. For comparison, the men's World Cup started in 1930 and eight different nations have been crowned champions across the 21 editions. What are the key Opta facts to know? 15 - Brazil superstar Marta, who will feature in France, is the World Cup's all-time top scorer having scored 15 times in 17 appearances. 2 - France will be bidding to become just the second host nation to win the tournament after the United States did so in 1999. 33 of 43 - The United States have won 33 of their 43 World Cup matches – the most of any nation. 41 - Formiga will become the oldest player to feature at a World Cup if she is selected by Brazil in this tournament. 73 - In total, 73 women in the World Cup squads play their club football in the United States, the most of any nation, with Spain second as 52 players are employed by teams there. What was the result of the group-stage draw? The draw was held on December 8, with the 24 teams divided into four pots based on their FIFA world rankings. Group A: France, Norway, Nigeria, South KoreaGroup B: Germany, China, Spain, South AfricaGroup C: Italy, Brazil, Australia, Jamaica Group D: England, Japan, Scotland, Argentina Group E: Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, CameroonGroup F: United States, Sweden, Thailand, Chile ALSO READ | Why the world's best player Ada Hegerberg has ditched Women's World Cup 2019 What is the schedule for the group stages? Friday, June 7 France v South Korea (Paris) Saturday, June 8 Germany v China (Rennes) Spain v South Africa (Le Havre) Norway v Nigeria (Reims) Sunday, June 9 Australia v Italy (Valenciennes) Brazil v Jamaica (Grenoble) England v Scotland (Nice) Monday, June 10 Argentina v Japan (Paris) Canada v Cameroon (Montpellier) Tuesday, June 11 New Zealand v Netherlands (Le Havre) Chile v Sweden (Rennes) USA v Thailand (Reims) Wednesday, June 12 Nigeria v South Korea (Grenoble) Germany v Spain (Valenciennes) France v Norway (Nice) Thursday, June 13 Australia v Brazil (Montpellier) South Africa v China (Paris) Friday, June 14 Japan v Scotland (Rennes) Jamaica v Italy (Reims) England v Argentina (Le Havre) Saturday, June 15 Netherlands v Cameroon (Valenciennes) Canada v New Zealand (Grenoble) Sunday, June 16 Sweden v Thailand (Nice) USA v Chile (Paris) Monday, June 17 China v Spain (Le Havre) South Africa v Germany (Montpellier) Nigeria v France (Rennes) South Korea v Norway (Reims) Tuesday, June 18 Jamaica v Australia (Grenoble) Italy v Brazil (Valenciennes) Wednesday, June 19 Japan v England (Nice) Scotland v Argentina (Paris) Thursday, June 20 Cameroon v New Zealand (Montpellier) Netherlands v Canada (Reims) Sweden v USA (Le Havre) Thailand v Chile (Rennes) Read more stories on Football. 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