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The eighth edition of the quadrennial Women's World Cup begins in France on Friday, June 7 as 24 nations battle it out for global honour and pride.
The tournament has on offer multiple world class players of the women's game including Brazil's Marta (who is the record goalscorer in the tournament's history), USA's Alex Morgan, Nigeria's Asisat Oshoala, Nikita Paris of England, Christine Sinclair of Canada (who would be aiming to break Abby Wambach's all-time record of 184 international goals), as well as the 2017 FIFA's The Best Women's Player Lieke Martens of the Netherlands.
One high profile name which would, however, be missing is that of inaugural and defending Female Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg who was the inspiration behind Lyon's fourth consecutive Champions League triumph. She made the decision to continue her almost two-year exile from the international scene to protest against inequality in pay between the male and female sport.
Her protest is justified in that the total prize money on offer at the female World up is less than one-tenth of what their male counterparts received in Russia last year. And despite improvements in marketability and coverage of the female game in recent years, there is still a long way to go.
Hegerberg's non-participation apart, the World Cup promises to be an exciting encounter as one month of exhilarating football is guaranteed as the best in the world attempt to prove that what a man can do, a woman can do better.
In this piece, we shall be profiling the top five favourites to lift the trophy at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon on July 7.
Honourable mentions - Japan, Brazil, Sweden, Australia, Canada
#5 England
FIFA World Ranking - 3rd
Head Coach - Phil Neville
Player to watch - Nikita Parris
The Lionesses of England have made steady progress over the last year since the appointment of former Manchester United man Phil Neville.
They have undoubtedly benefited from the rebranding of the top tier of their domestic league in 2011, with most of the current squad coming from clubs in the FA Women's Super League (FA WSL).
They would be banking on the goalscoring prowess of Nikita Parris to lead the line and fire them to glory.
The 25-year-old had made a name for herself in her country where she starred for three different WSL clubs in eight years, becoming the all-time record goalscorer in the process before securing a transfer to French giants Lyon in 2019.
She played a part in helping Les Fenottes to their fourth consecutive Champions League crown as well as their 13th consecutive league title.
England triumphed in the 2019 edition of the SheBelieves Cup, ousting the likes of USA, Japan and Brazil to lay their marker ahead of this tournament.
#4 Netherlands
FIFA World Ranking - 8th
Head Coach - Sarina Wiegman-Glotzbach
Player to watch - Lieke Martens
The Netherlands surprised everyone around the world when they defied all expectations to triumph in the 2017 European Championships.
They had been participating in only their third ever European Championship, which brought about an element of surprise, but showed great resilience and ingenuity to knock out Sweden and England en route their shock triumph.
The side impressively won all six matches in the tournament, leading head coach Sarina Wiegman to be named the 2017's Best Women's Coach, while Lieke Martens walked away with the Best Women's Player crown.
The 26-year-old has grown from strength to strength since then and would be hoping to go one better than the Silver medal she achieved with Barcelona in the 2019 Women's Champions League.
Having firmly established themselves in the upper echelons of the women's game, opponents would now be taking the Dutch more seriously, but they have shown to be more than capable of dealing with the increased attention.
#3 France
FIFA World Ranking - 4th
Head Coach - Corinne Diacre
Player to watch - Eugenie Le Sommer
The French Women's National Team would be hoping to follow in the footsteps of their male counterparts by triumphing on the world stage. And with the current crop of players on display, there is no reason why they can't go all the way for the first time.
In recent years, Les Bleus have gained a steady reputation of having one of the fastest growing female National Teams, but they have not quite fulfilled their promise on the international scene.
They would be hoping that this is the year where they can finally cement their status as an elite team in the women's game and would be buoyed by the home support and the goalscoring abilities of Lyon talisman Eugenie Le Sommer.
The 30-year-old was once again the star of the show as Lyon continued their invincibility on the women's club scene, with Le Sommer scoring six goals from eight Champions League matches to help her club triumph on the continent.
They would be managed by 44-year-old Corinne Diacre who in 2014 had become the first ever woman to be appointed head coach of a men's professional football team in France. She would be hoping to take it one further by leading her country to world glory.
#2 Germany
FIFA World Ranking - 2nd
Head Coach - Martina Voss-Tecklenburg
Player to watch - Dzsenifer Marozsan
Germany might have fallen some way off their all-time highs in the mid-noughties led by Birgit Prinz and Nadine Angerer, but they are still a force to be reckoned with in the women's game anytime any day.
The Germans are the most successful European side in the game, having won the European Championship a total of eight out of the 12 times including six consecutively between 1995 and 2013, while they are the only side in the history of football to have won both the male and female World Cup trophies.
They might have gone off the radar in recent years, but Martina Voss-Tecklenburg has gone about building an efficient machine in a quiet way.
The 51-year-old was a star of the national team for 16 years during her playing days and was appointed as manager in November of last year, but she has successfully overseen victories over tournament favourites France and Sweden, with her high pressing style winning praise.
Germany's charge on the field would be led by Dzsenifer Marozsan and the 27-year-old would be hoping to inspire from midfield for her nation just like she has done as the creative force for Lyon.
#1 USA
FIFA World Ranking - 1st
Head Coach - Jill Ellis
Player to watch - Alex Morgan
USA are by far the most successful side in the history of the women's game, having triumphed in the World Cup a total of three times, while also winning medals in every other edition in addition to winning Olympic Gold on four occasions.
The USWNT has given us multiple stars of the game in the not too distant past including Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly, Abby Wambach but to name a few. And the current crop led by Orlando Pride forward Alex Morgan is no different as they attempt to write history by becoming the first ever team to successfully defend their world title.
They would however not have an easy route to the final, as they have been drawn in the same group alongside Sweden, while potential clashes against France and England further ahead in the competition.
However, the stars and stripes would be confident in the ability of their ladies, as they have only grown in strength since their victory over Japan in Canada four years ago.
