England have been drawn alongside France, Mexico and Colombia in Group F of next year’s World Cup, a favourable draw which will please the head coach, Mark Sampson, due to straightforward travelling requirements.
Before the ballot, at the Canadian Museum of History in Ottawa, one of six host cities, Sampson had spoken of his wish “to get a draw which involves a minimum amount of travel” but admitted afterwards that the draw was “very exciting”.
England will kick-off with a game against France on 9 June in Moncton, in the south-east, before facing Colombia four days later at the same venue. The group will conclude with a fixture against Mexico in Montreal on 17 June, while France take on Colombia at the same time in Ottawa. A flight from Moncton to Montreal takes around 90 minutes.
“It’s a big challenge for the team but we feel it is a group we can be competitive in and our aim is to go there and attempt to top our group,” Sampson said.
France were one of six seeded sides, alongside the hosts, Brazil, Germany, Japan and the USA. The FA announced a friendly against Les Bleus last week and that game, scheduled for 9 April, has now become even more important. “There’ll be a little bit extra on it now, a little more edge to it, now that we know we’re facing them a few months later,” Sampson said.
Colombia had mistakenly been drawn in Group E but could not face their fellow South Americans from Brazil. That temporarily left the Fifa secretary general, Jérôme Valcke, who was adjudicating, with a look of panic across his face but Colombia were then transferred to Group F. England will fancy their chances against Colombia and Mexico, who are ranked 31st and 25th in the world.
Sampson’s team are ranked No7 and had confirmed their place at next summer’s tournament in the most impressive fashion, winning all 10 of their qualifiers. They scored 52 times in qualifying, conceding just once – away to Ukraine in a game which they won 2-1.
However, England were defeated emphatically by Germany in front of a record crowd at Wembley last month, tempering expectations. England have reached the quarter-finals on three occasions: in 1995, 2007 and 2011. “That’s a big motivation for us to try to break that record,” Sampson said.
“The one thing I know with this team is they’ll make the country proud. They’ll play in a way that people can get behind them. I’m sure come next summer people will get behind this team because of the values they epitomise.”
This is the first time the World Cup will contain 24 teams and two sides will qualify automatically from each group, with the four best third-placed finishers advancing to the last 16.
The hosts, Canada, will open the tournament at the Edmonton Commonwealth Stadium on 6 June against China, while Group D, involving the two-times winners USA, Nigeria, Australia and Sweden, was immediately christened the group of death.
That group will provide the most intriguing fixture of the tournament’s early stages when the USA take on Sweden on 12 June in Winnipeg. The Swedish team finished third in 2011, are ranked No5 in the world and are coached by Pia Sundhage, who oversaw a five-year period of American success that included two Olympic titles, though they were defeated in the final of the last World Cup, by Japan.
The reigning champions were drawn in Group C with Cameroon, Ecuador and Switzerland. They will once again be among the favourites to reach the final, which will take place on 5 July in Vancouver.
The buildup to the draw had been marred by some controversy over the six venues for the finals, which are all equipped with artificial turf. It has led to a legal challenge from around 50 players. Fifa, however, has stood firm on the issue, with Valcke suggesting that artificial turf may be used in future men’s World Cup tournaments. On Friday, he described the furore as a “nonsense” but had agreed to discuss the issue with representatives of the nations who have raised concerns.
The draw
Group A Canada, New Zealand, China, Netherlands
Group B Germany, Ivory Coast, Thailand, Norway
Group C Japan, Cameroon, Ecuador, Switzerland
Group D USA, Nigeria, Australia, Sweden
Group E Brazil, Costa Rica, Korea Republic, Spain
Group F France, Mexico, Colombia, England
