Vietnam second shortest team at Women’s World Cup

Vietnam (in red) play New Zealand in a friendly match on July 10, 2023. Photo by AFP

Midfielders Duong Thi Van and Ngan Thi Van Su are the shortest on the team with a height of 1.5 m, while goalkeeper Dao Thi Kieu Oanh is the tallest at 1.7 m. The shortest player in the 2023 Women’s World Cup is Zambia’s Chitundu Avell at 1.4 m. Zambia are also the shortest team, with an average height of 1.5939 m.

The top five shortest teams also include South Africa (1.6113 m), Costa Rica (1.6439 m) and Japan (1.647 m). The five teams with the best average height are all in Europe: Denmark (1.7348 m), Germany (1.72 m), Sweden (1.7087 m), Netherlands (1.7061 m) and Norway (1.7026 m).

Vietnam’s three opponents in the group stage all have good average heights. In addition to the Netherlands, the third tallest team, the defending champions U.S. are sixth with 1.6939 m, while Portugal are 17th with 1.6804 m. Philippines has the tallest player in the tournament, goalkeeper Kaiya Rose Jota at 1.9 m.

According to FIFA, physical factors including height create a bigger strength difference in women’s football than in men’s.

Vietnam, competing in World Cup for the first fime, have the eighth highest average age, along with South Africa with 27.52. The youngest player from Vietnam is striker Vu Thi Hoa, who was born in 2003, while the oldest is midfielder Tran Thi Thuy Trang, born in 1988.

The oldest team are South Korea (29.35), while the youngest team are Haiti (22.87). South Korea have the youngest player in the tournament, striker Casey Phair, who was born in 2007. The oldest player is Ebi Onome of Nigeria born in 1983.

The 2023 Women’s World Cup will take place from July 20 to August 20 in nine cities across Australia and New Zealand. This is the first tournament with 32 competing teams instead of 24. Each player will receive a minimum bonus of US$30,000, which can increase to $270,000 if they become champions. The national federation of each participating team will receive a minimum of $1.56 million, and $4.29 million if the team win the title.