England’s path to the 2027 Women’s World Cup has now been confirmed, with the Lionesses set to take on Greece in the first round of the qualifying play-offs this October. Having missed out on direct qualification after losing to Spain, Sarina Wiegman’s team must now go through two rounds of two-legged ties to book their place at next summer’s tournament in Brazil.

Spain’s dominance forces England into play-offs

Drawn in the same qualifying group as Spain, England were aware that only the group winners would secure automatic entry to the 2027 World Cup. After edging La Roja 1-0 at Wembley in April, the Lionesses travelled to Mallorca in June needing just a draw to clinch top spot. However, a heavy 4-0 defeat to the world champions saw Spain finish at the summit, forcing England into the play-off route.

Despite the setback, England remain strong favourites to qualify. They are the highest-ranked side in the play-offs and are seeded, which ensures a more favourable draw. Speaking earlier this month, head coach Sarina Wiegman expressed confidence in her squad’s ability to progress. “We have a team that is very good, I think,” she said. “We know what we have to do, so I’m very positive that we’re going to qualify anyway.”

England draw Greece in first play-off encounter

The draw, conducted on Thursday, confirmed that England will face Greece in the opening round. The Lionesses will travel for the first leg before hosting the return fixture on home soil. Greece enter the tie after topping their League C qualifying group, winning all four matches against the Faroe Islands and Georgia, scoring 11 goals and conceding four. Ranked 59th in the world and with limited major tournament experience—having only featured at the 2004 Athens Olympics as hosts—Greece will be heavy underdogs against the European champions.

This will mark the first-ever meeting between the two nations in women’s international football.

Potential second-round opponents: Slovakia or Ukraine

Should England overcome Greece as expected, they will face either Slovakia or Ukraine in the second round, with the winner securing a place at the 2027 World Cup in Brazil. Ukraine, who were in the same qualifying group as England earlier in the campaign, were comfortably beaten twice by Wiegman’s side—6-1 in Turkey and 3-0 in the reverse fixture last week.

Ukraine will also be favoured to beat Slovakia in their first-round tie. They sit 20 places higher in the FIFA rankings and recently competed in League A, while Slovakia finished third in their League B group behind Portugal and Finland, winning only two matches—both against Latvia—and will be relegated to League C.

The decisive second-round fixtures will also be played over two legs, scheduled during the final international window of 2026 in November.

Who has already qualified for the 2027 Women’s World Cup?

England are not the only European powerhouse facing the play-offs. With just four automatic berths available—claimed by Spain, Denmark, France, and Germany—several top-ranked nations must still fight for qualification. These include the Netherlands, 2017 European champions and 2019 World Cup finalists; Norway, featuring stars like Ada Hegerberg and Caroline Graham Hansen; and Sweden, who reached the semi-finals of the last two World Cups.

While most of these sides are expected to progress, strong competition remains from the likes of Scotland, Portugal, Switzerland, and Wales, who will be eager to spring surprises during the final two international windows of 2026.

So far, 13 teams have secured their spots at the 2027 Women’s World Cup alongside hosts Brazil. Among them are Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Argentina, and Colombia.