At least one European flag-bearer will be featured in the 2019 Women’s World Cup final with the Netherlands and Sweden set to face-off on Wednesday for the right to line up in that fixture. The Dutch have enjoyed a fairytale run through the tournament and are on the verge of making their Women’s World Cup debut, while Sweden will fight to ensure this year’s revival doesn’t end in the semifinals.
Women’s World Cup: Netherlands vs Sweden
When: Wednesday, July 3
Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV Channel: FS1, Telemundo
Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)
The Oranje look particularly difficult to stop in their current form, and it’s hard to believe one could count on a single hand the number of major tournaments they’ve participated in. Undefeated in France so far, the Netherlands has now won eight matches on the pitch. Their 2-0 victory over Italy in the quarterfinals again displayed perseverance and patience.
A maiden World Cup title for Sarina Wiegman’s side would see them become only the second nation in history to simultaneously hold the European Women’s Championship and Women’s World Cup. Germany pulled off that feat twice as they won the former tournament six times in succession between 1995 and 2013, when the Netherlands finally broke their hold.
Sweden has lost the last two times they’ve encountered the Dutch and failed to score in either of those matches. Peter Gerhardsson’s outfit suffered a 2-0 defeat to the United States in the group stage, but have since bested Canada and Germany in back-to-back games. Ousting Germany in a 2-1 quarterfinal comeback was a particularly impressive result and one that showcased this Swedish side’s reluctance to bow to pressure.
Arsenal’s Vivianne Miedema has endured rough patches in France, but rose to the challenge by netting the breakthrough goal in the Netherlands’ last outing. The Oranje have scored twice in each of their last four outings.
Sweden has been slower off the mark in attack and have only managed to score a first-half goal in two of their last 10 matches. The Dutch won’t be as forgiving if they experience the same lag on Wednesday. Linkoping forward Stina Blackstenius, 23, will be their woman to watch after she scored match-winners against both Canada and Germany.
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