Futsal Women’s World Cup qualifying: Format, calendar

UEFA have provided an update on the FIFA Futsal WWC 2025 qualifying format: no preliminary round, a main round and an elite round to decide the four UEFA side that will qualify for the tournament.

UEFA qualifying contenders

Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatia
Czechia
England
Finland
France
Gibraltar
Hungary
Italy
Kazakhstan
Latvia
Lithuania
Moldova
Netherlands
Northern Ireland
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Ukraine

Main round (draw and match dates TBC)

• The 24 teams (all entrants apart from top seeds Portugal and Spain) are drawn into six groups of four
• The group winners and, if necessary*, the best runner-up qualify for the elite round.

*Depending on an eventual European World Cup host selection

Elite round (draw and match dates TBC)

• The eight teams, including Portugal and Spain, are drawn into two groups of four.
• The top two in each group qualify for the finals.

France will hope to make it to the Elite Round for their first time in any UEFA tournament. We can also note that the FIGC has expressed an interest in hosting the World Cup in 2025 and it could potentially impact the qualification.

France Futsal WNT earn their first ever win

In their fourth game, the French team defeated Slovenia away three goals to one to record their first ever win. The full record is P4 W1 D2 L1.

The first game was a double header in France that ended with a 1-1 draw and a 1-2 defeat against Finland and then France played a double header away to Slovenia with a 2-2 draw and a 3-1 win.

The France Futsal WNT was recently created as part of the FFF commitment towards the sport and with the FIFA Futsal WWC being set for 2025, it came at right time for France to enter the tournament qualification. Those qualifiers will start in October.

The FFF has pledged 18.4 M€ for the 2022-25 cycle in order to develop men and women futsal. The MNT has recently qualified for the 2024 FIFA WC, obviously the WNT will try their best to get one of the four spots for the 2025 FIFA WWC, but it is unlikely as the team has just started with the first ever training camp taking place back in September 23.

If we look at the goalscorers for France for those four games

France 1 Finland 1 (Lena Jouan)

France 1 Finland 2 (Alexandra Atamaniuk) a player who won the u-19 2013 Euros in Wales in 11 a side football alongside M’Bock Bathy, Tounkara, Tolleti, Durand, Lavogez, Le Bihan etc

Slovenia 2 France 2 (Amandine Billon, Lena Jouan)

Slovenia 1 France 3 ( Alexandra Atamaniuk, Lena Jouan x2)

To recap Lena Jouan 4, Alexandra Atamaniuk 2, Amandine Billon 1)

Up next will be a tournament in Serbia in 14,16,17 and 18 March, here France will take on the host, plus Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary.