Women's World Cup Takeaways: New champion will be crowned after Sweden beats Japan

A new name will be etched on the FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy this year, another sure sign that the gap between the haves and have-nots in the women’s game is closing.

After dumping two-time defending champion United States out of the tournament in the previous round, Sweden bested Japan (the 2011 World Cup winners) in Friday’s quarterfinal, which means there are no more former champions remaining in the tournament. Previous winners Germany and Norway were previously eliminated. 

Sweden will meet Spain in next Tuesday’s semifinal in a matchup that promises to be one of the most entertaining and intriguing of this World Cup.

Quarterfinals: Japan 1, Sweden 2 (in Auckland) - Game stats || Report

Could this be the year that Sweden breaks through? 

Sweden has been the perennial bridesmaid at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, having participated in all eight previous tournaments, and finishing runners-up in 2003 to go along with three other semifinal appearances. Olympic success has also eluded the Swedes, who had to settle for second place after losing consecutive gold-medal games in 2016 and 2021. 

But maybe this will finally be the year when Sweden takes the last step toward footballing immortality. Ranked third in the world at the moment, the Swedes hit their stride coming into this World Cup and are now the highest-ranked nation remaining in the competition following their thrilling win over No. 11 Japan on Friday. 

Fresh off an epic win over the top-ranked United States in the round-of-16, Sweden kept its momentum alive with a hard-fought victory over Japan courtesy of goals from Amanda Ilestedt and Filippa Angeldal, while goalkeeper Zećira Mušović extended her shutout streak to 429 minutes.

The Swedes tore into the Japanese right from the opening kickoff with their dominant play in midfield and were rewarded for their efforts just after the half-hour mark. The Nadeshiko were unable to clear their lines off a free kick played into the box and Ilestedt pounced by burying her shot from in close to put Sweden in front. It was only the second goal Japan had conceded at this World Cup and marked the first time it had trailed at this tournament. Japan was clearly rattled, and Sweden took full advantage by doubling their lead early in the second half when Angeldal converted from the penalty spot.

For a side that outscored its opponents 14-1 in its previous four games (all of them wins), Japan looked shell-shocked and was unable to unlock the Swedish defence — its first shot on target didn’t come until the 63rd minute. Only after coach Futoshi Ikeda made some second-half substitutions did the Japanese attack come alive. Riko Ueki’s missed penalty and fellow substitute Honoka Hayashi's goal were the highlights of a frenetic final 25 minutes of regulation and injury time from a desperate Japanese side that pushed the Swedes to the limit but ultimately fell just short. 

Japan conceded more goals in this game than it had in their first four games, a testament to the Swedes' attacking ingenuity and persistence. Friday’s defeat means the Japanese have now lost three of their last four knockout games at the World Cup, dating back to their loss to the U.S. in the 2015 final held in Vancouver. 

This was also only the second time that Japan had lost to a European opponent in a knockout round match at the World Cup — it had lost to eventual runners-up the Netherlands in the round-of-16 in 2019. Prior to Friday’s loss, it had won five of its six games against teams from Europe in do-or-die games at the World Cup.  

In the 87th minute, just moments after Aoba Fujino's free-kick smacked the crossbar, Honoka Hayashi drilled the ball past goalkeeper Zećira Mušović from in close for Japan after the Swedish defence couldn’t clear its lines. In the buildup, Kiko Seike made a great turn inside the box to peel away from a Swedish defender before playing the ball forward to keep Japan’s attacking sequence alive before Hayashi swept the ball home.

"It's wonderful, obviously. The game had everything. In terms of performance, we had our best of the tournament. It got very exciting; Japan is one of the best teams in the tournament.” – Sweden coach Peter Gerhardsson told Swedish radio. 

1. Amanda Ilestedt, Sweden: The newly-signed Arsenal striker was a tower of strength for the Swedes up front, scoring her fourth goal of the tournament to help send her country through to the semifinals.

2. Honoka Hayashi, Japan: Just six minutes after entering the game as a substitute, the West Ham United midfielder scored her first-ever international goal to give her country a lifeline. 

3. Zećira Mušović, Sweden: Fresh off an 11-save effort against the United States, Mušović once again came up with some timely stops against Japan. 

The quarterfinals wrap up with two matches on Saturday. Co-host Australia takes on France in Brisbane (3 a.m. ET). A win would send the Matildas through to the semifinals for the first time in eight World Cup appearances. France’s best showing was a fourth-place finish in 2011.

Also, England clashes with Colombia in Sydney (6:30 a.m. ET). While the Lionesses are attempting to make it to the semifinals for a third straight time, Colombia is looking to become only the second South American team to reach the final four (Brazil in 1999 and 2007).