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When Sweden Women and Australia Women square off in the Women's World Cup 2023 third-place playoff, they will need to bounce back from their semi-final heartbreak.
Spain ended the Europeans' chances of winning the championship, and England defeated the tournament co-hosts in the semifinal match.
Sweden advanced easily through the group round before defeating the USA and Japan to go to the semifinals, where they will play Spain.
Rebecka Blomqvist, a forward for Wolfsburg, appeared to have forced extra time when she scored in the 88th minute to offset Salma Paralluelo's opening goal.
As it turned out, the two teams were tied for barely 93 seconds before Olga Carmona of Real Madrid hit an outstanding long-range shot that bounced off the crossbar and went in to secure Spain's advancement to the final and put an end to Sweden's hopes of winning the Women's World Cup title for the first time.
Unfortunately, Sweden has grown accustomed to competing in third-place playoffs after losing three of their four Women's World Cup semi-final appearances.
They have triumphed in each of their three playoff appearances, and after defeating England 2-1 in 2019, they have a chance to finish in third place in back-to-back Women's World Cups.
After they came back from the verge of group-stage elimination to advance to the Women's World Cup semi-finals for the first time, Australia's journey throughout their home tournament has captured a nation.
The Matildas had a strong start to the knockout rounds, easily defeating Denmark by a score of 2-0. They then defeated France in a thrilling penalty shootout in the quarterfinals to go to the semifinals and face their old foe, England.
Sam Kerr, who was cleared to play versus England, put on a masterful performance in the 63rd minute when she unleashed an unstoppable long-range strike to offset Ella Toone's first goal.
Australia failed to capitalize on Kerr's equalizer, as goals from Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo condemned the Matildas to a 3-1 defeat, eliminating their chances of winning the grand prize. This disappointed the home fans.
While the Women's World Cup trophy may elude them, the 11.15 million viewers who came in to see the Matildas play in the semi-finals, making it the most-watched television program in Australia ever, attest to the fact that the Matildas have elevated women's football in their nation.
They still have a chance to end a great campaign on a high note, and for a country that had never advanced past the quarterfinal round prior to this competition, Tony Gustavsson's team would undoubtedly consider third place to be a success.
