Rio de Janeiro: Brazil will stage the opening game and final of the 2027 Women's World Cup at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana Stadium, according to the match schedule unveiled on Thursday for the 32-team tournament.
The hosts kick off the event on June 24 in a fitting opening to the first Women's World Cup held in South America, with the Maracana -- one of the game's most famous venues and the site of Brazil's heartbreak defeat by Uruguay in the 1950 men's World Cup decider -- also hosting the July 25 final.
FIFA confirmed that all eight host cities will stage at least seven matches and a minimum of one knockout game.
Brasilia, Porto Alegre, Recife and Salvador will stage matches through to the last 16, while Belo Horizonte, Fortaleza, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo will hold the quarter-finals.
Sao Paulo and Rio will host the semi-finals.
The Maracana will become only the third stadium to host both a men's and women's World Cup final, following Stockholm's Rasunda Stadium and the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
The final schedule will be published later this year.
