The Reggae Girlz created history on Wednesday by holding the mighty Brazilians to a 0-0 draw to become the first-ever Caribbean women’s team to advance to the knockout stages of the World Cup. With that said, the knockout rounds kicks off tomorrow, Saturday, August 5, with two mouth-watering clashes: firstly, Switzerland and Spain go head-to-head, then the unbeaten Japan will flex their muscles against Norway in an eagerly anticipated clash.

Event # 1 – CUP – Switzerland vs Spain – 1:00 am

The real action gets underway at the Women’s World Cup on Saturday (December 5), as the round-of-16 matches begin.

One of the pre-tournament favourites to lift the title, Spain, will hope to return to form following their 4-0 battering at the hands of Japan on Monday in their top-of-the-table group match. Spain’s women went from potential World Cup winners in their first two matches to being humiliated by Japan.

They opened their campaign with a 3-0 win over Costa Rica then brushed aside Zambia 5-0, following their eye-catching displays, Spain’s first real test saw them fail miserably as they were comfortably dispatched by Japan to finish second in the group.

The Swiss have been solid but not spectacular at the tournament so far, having advanced to the knockout round by winning one game and drawing two matches. Switzerland started their campaign with a 2-0 win over the Philippines followed by goalless draws against Norway and New Zealand, which was enough to book their spot in the knockout rounds. The Swiss team who are yet to concede a goal in this tournament will be hoping to frustrate the Spaniards with their solid defensive unit and try and hit them on the counter.

KEY STATS

●Switzerland – have failed to score in two of their three matches at the World Cup so far and have the fewest shots of the teams currently confirmed in the knockout round.

● Spain – have scored 8 goals and conceded 4 times so far in the World Cup, but they have kept two clean sheets from their three matches played.

● Both sides – the teams have met three times since 2013, with Spain winning twice and the Swiss winning once. Their last meeting between the pair were back in 2019 with Spain winning 2-0.

The betting tip. Spain win.

Event # 2 W/Cup – Japan vs Norway – 3:00 am

The in-form Japan team will be aiming to continue their impressive showing at the Women’s World Cup when they kick off their round-of-16 clash against Norway on Saturday.

Japan have bulldozed their way through the World Cup so far, dominating both in attack and defence. They are yet to concede a single goal having swept through the group stage by winning their three matches by a combined score of 11-0.

The impressive Japanese side proved too good for the previously unbeaten Spanish side in their last match as they dismantled them 4-0, that as the other teams at the World Cup are taking notice of them as a contender for the World Cup crown. Having participated in seven previous World Cup, this will be Japan’s eighth appearance and they will be aiming to add a second title to the one they won in 2011.

Norway have struggled for consistency so far in this World Cup tournament, winning once, drawing once, and losing once from their three matches so far. Despite their less-than-ideal start to the Women’s World Cup having lost 1-0 to co-hosts New Zealand in their opening game, followed by a 0-0 draw with Switzerland, they rebounded with a big 6-0 win over the Philippines to squeeze through to the knockout round at the expense of New Zealand.

Like their opponents Japan, Norway is participating in the Women’s World Cup for the eighth time in their history. In 1995, Norway won the Women’s World Cup, becoming one of only four countries to lift the crown.

KEY STATS

●Japan – have won all three matches played so far scoring 11 times without conceding. They last won the Women World Cup back in 2011 as one of the four teams to have won it.

● Norway – are participating in their eight World Cup and won the title in 1995.

● Both sides – in their last encounter, a friendly match back in 2018, Japan were impressive when winning 4-1.

The betting tip. Japan win.