Way-too-early 2027 Women's World Cup Power Rankings: USWNT outside top five; Spain and England lead the way

Which teams land in the top ten after the World Cup?

Spain are new champions of the world as the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup concluded on Sunday. They defeated England 1-0 and will have the honor of being world champions through the next cycle. The ninth iteration of the tournament is going into the history books as one of the best as there were 32 participating nations, eight debutants and now a new champion for the first time since 2011.  1. Spain The world champions showed up and stepped out on the biggest stage. They did it all through discourse and disagreement with their federation and coaching staff. Aitana Bonmati, Jenni Hermoso and Salma Paralluelo are all stars in different phases of their career who came together to make history at a crucial time.  2. England The Lionesses fell just short of bringing it home against Spain in the final. The 2022 Euro champions are still going to be contenders in the next cycle. Young players Lauren James, Ella Toone, Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo are set to compete for years to come. 3. Sweden Sweden took home third place in the tournament and on our power rankings. Getting a bronze World Cup medal for a fourth time does contain a certain amount of cruelty to it, but it also takes a bizarre level of success to achieve. The team gave us set piece realness all tournament, and they will be in the mix in the running next cycle too.  4. Japan The team looked like the squad to beat all tournaments till the quarterfinal. Outstanding fluidity, ball control and beautiful goals kept audiences cheering. This World Cup definitely pushed forward a new era of players and the lesson of a quarterfinal elimination will only be motivation moving forward. 5. Australia The co-hosts waltzed all the way to the semifinals and did so mostly without their star striker Sam Kerr. Mary Fowler and Kyra Coony-Cross are young players who have placed their stake in the future of this squad. Sometimes the magic runs out, but the history-defining moments throughout the tournament are a different kind of reward for the program. 6. United States Officially former World Cup champions, the federation has already made the next steps to the program. Vlatko Andonovski's resignation has been accepted, Twila Kilgore is interim manager, and a search for a new head coach and general manager is on. It's going to be a promising prospect to coach Naomi Girma, Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman into the next cycle.  7. France The French were eliminated in another quarterfinal, but their efforts to get there in a short buildup with manager Herve Renard should be applauded. There's a layer of unknowns around team veterans Wendie Renard, Eugenie LeSommer and Amandine Henry -- but Vicky Becho, Marie Antoinette Katoto and Selma Bacha are all players to build with toward the Olympics as the tournament hosts. 8. Netherlands They were tough opposition to face throughout the tournament and were the team that gave Spain fits in the knockout rounds. They may not have the hardware out of this World Cup but can easily claim the honors of the most frustrating to play against and will give England problems in the Nations League competition in September.  9. Colombia Las Chicas Superpoderosas left their mark on the tournament all the way through to the quarterfinals. They knock Brazil out of the top ten to claim a spot. 18-year-old Linda Caicedo has a bright future, and they can stay highly rated as they look ahead to an invite at the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup. 10. Germany Bombed out of the group stage and still in the top ten for their quick action after their elimination. The DFB is reportedly set to name Nadine Kessler as DFB CEO. The former international attacking mid would be the general manager of the academy and national teams. They will return to the big stage with top-level young players Klara Buehl, Jule Brand and Lena Oberdorf.  

Now that the tournament is over, FIFA will continue the bidding process for the next host of the 2027 World Cup, and teams will look ahead to the next opportunity. The official FIFA rankings haven't been updated yet, and the complex formula may keep top-rated teams who were knocked out early still firmly in the top ten. There are four years till the next tournament and a long ways to go, but let's take a look at some teams and see where they landed on our way-too-early rankings for the 2027 Women's World Cup.