For the first time in history, the dialogue between the referee and VAR has been made public, approaching the Women's Football World Cup: "New Old Dialogue" becomes the main theme of the Women's Football | World Cup | First

Editor's note: On July 20th, 2023, the FIFA Women's World Cup will be held in Australia and New Zealand. The Chinese women's football team will debut against Denmark in the group stage on the 22nd, followed by matches against Haiti and England. This Chinese women's football team has a strong "Shanghai color": head coach Shui Qingxia has long coached the Shanghai women's football team, and five international players including Zhang Xin, Zhu Yu, Wang Linlin, Tang Jiali, and Xiao Yuyi are from the Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank women's football team. In addition, overseas Chinese players Yang Lina and Shen Mengyu are also trained by Shanghai.

On the occasion of the "Steel Rose" competing in the World Cup, the Liberation Daily's Shangguan News City Channel and the School of Journalism and Communication at Shanghai Sport University jointly launched the "Approaching the Women's Football World Cup" column, approaching the women's football World Cup with 32 participating teams for the first time, exploring the strength of Shanghai in the "Steel Rose", witnessing the spirit of women's football soldiers facing world strong teams, and experiencing the development trends and latest trends of global women's football.

On July 20th, the 9th FIFA Women's World Cup will open in Australia and New Zealand. As the first women's football World Cup jointly hosted by two countries in the southern hemisphere, this tournament highlights the theme of "dialogue between old and new".

Player dialogue: Veterans on duty and new recruits reporting

The succession of veterans and new recruits in sports events is a topic worth paying attention to. On July 5th, the Chinese women's football team officially announced the list of 23 players to compete in the 2023 Women's World Cup. Among them, 9 have participated in the World Cup before, and the remaining 14 are embarking on their first World Cup journey.

In the "9+14" old and new lineup, there are veteran players worth respecting: 33 year old Wang Shanshan accompanied the team to compete in the Women's World Cup for the third time; 31 year old mother Zhang Xin made her debut in the 2019 French Women's World Cup to make up for the regret of missing it; Former captain Wu Haiyan, who was absent from the Asian Cup due to injury, has returned and will continue to serve as the team's ultimate defender.

There are also new recruits worth looking forward to: Zhang Linyan, born in the 2000s, has participated in the World Cup for the first time, but after training in the 2022 Women's Football Asian Cup, her excellent attacking ability is expected to be released again. She scored a goal in the second warm-up match between the Chinese women's football team and the Russian women's football team. As early as 5 years ago in the 9th U20 Women's World Cup warm-up match, Zhang Linyan had a match with England star Chloe Kelly. Li Mengwen, who once played for Paris Saint Germain, may become a new and old partner with Wu Haiyan, jointly supporting the defense line. The new lineup of veterans and new recruits has become the biggest highlight of this year's Chinese women's football team.

Veterans lead new recruits, not just in the Chinese women's football team. 37 year old Brazilian legend Mata and 40 year old Canadian Christian Sinclair will both compete in the Women's World Cup for the 6th time. They are expected to surpass male football player Cristiano Ronaldo and create a feat of scoring goals in six consecutive World Cups. 38 year old Megan Lapinor represented the US team in her fourth and final World Cup tour.

The new star is also shining. Brazilian midfielder Caroline has unlimited talent, having scored 8 goals for the North Carolina Courage team in the national women's football league; Julia Grosso of Canada is not yet 23 years old, a potential rising star who helped the Canadian team win their first ever women's football gold medal during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; Trinity Rodman of the US team, inheriting the physique and resilience of her NBA superstar father Dennis Rodman, became the attacking core of the US front court.

The dialogue between veterans and new recruits is not only a part of real-life competitions, but also the best inheritance of sportsmanship.

Team dialogue: Old established powerhouses and new dark horses

Football is round, whether it is an old powerhouse or a new dark horse, there is a possibility of winning the championship trophy.

The 2023 Women's World Cup is the first time in history that the team has expanded to 32 teams, with 8 countries entering the final stage of the Women's World Cup for the first time in history: Vietnam, Haiti, Portugal, Morocco, Ireland, Zambia, the Philippines, and Panama.

Among them, Portugal and Ireland ranked 21st and 22nd respectively in the latest FIFA women's football rankings, and their overall strength should not be underestimated. The Irish women's football team will compete with one of the host countries, Australia, Tokyo Olympic champions Canada, and the African Eagles Nigeria for a spot in Group B.

Although it is difficult to deal with opponents in the same group, the Irish women's football team clearly does not intend to "accompany the Crown Prince to study". The Irish team has two core midfielders, Katie McCabe and Dennis O'Sullivan. The former has just been named Arsenal's Best Women's Football Player of the Year, while the latter has scored a historic goal for the Irish team to advance to the World Cup and is likely to play a disruptive role in Group B.

This World Cup has also become a stage for veteran powerhouses to pursue their dreams. As the previous champions and world number one team, the United States is eager to achieve an unprecedented feat of three consecutive World Cup championships in the southern hemisphere. In addition to Lapinor, Alex Morgan, Lindsay Holland, Julie Ertz, Rose Ravell, and others will also continue to play important roles in the Starlight Army. The Dutchman hopes to sweep away the gloom of the failed Lyon Stadium in 2019 and win his second World Series trophy after winning the UEFA Women's Cup in 2017 through the 2023 Women's World Cup.

In addition, established teams such as France, England, and Canada are also eager to give it a try. Coincidentally, there are teams in their respective groups that have advanced to the finals for the first time. Whether it is the old powerhouse that wins first, or the new dark horse that goes all out, will depend on direct dialogue on the field.

Rule dialogue: Former rules and modified content

The dialogue between old and new football matches involves both opponents and new regulations. Football is round, which represents the uncertainty of football matches and also represents the reunion of former opponents.

On the football field, new and old rules are also colliding and changing. Unlike the Men's World Cup, the Women's World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand this year gave captains the right to choose multiple armbands. Moreover, out of respect for the culture of Australia and New Zealand, the organizers have approved the appearance of indigenous flags in the competition venue.

The International Football Federation Council passed new football rules in March 2023. In the 2023 Women's World Cup, a dialogue between the referee and VAR referee will be publicly played to fans to help them understand the reasons for VAR referees. This is also the first time in the history of the World Cup that a dialogue between referees has been made public. New rules, old opponents, this set of "new old dialogue" is also worth looking forward to.