Algarve Cup

The Algarve Cup is an invitational tournament for national teams in women's association football hosted by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). Held annually in the Algarve region of Portugal since 1994, it is one of the most prestigious and longest-running women's international football events and has been nicknamed the "Mini FIFA Women's World Cup".[1]

Algarve Cup
Founded1994
Region Portugal
Number of teams12
Current champions Germany (4th title)
Most successful team(s) United States (10 titles)
WebsiteOfficial website
2020 Algarve Cup

The most successful teams have been the United States, with ten titles, followed by Norway and Sweden, with four. Norway's titles all came in the early years of the tournament, while the USA has won all its titles since 2000, including nine in thirteen years since 2003. Germany has won four times, and China has won twice.[2] The USA, Norway and Germany are the only nations to have won both the FIFA Women's World Cup and the Algarve Cup.

The Algarve Cup, as an annual event featuring most of the world's top women's football teams, has no parallel in the men's game, given that there are fewer professional women's leagues and thus fewer scheduling conflicts. It is played in late February or early March, at the same time as the Cyprus Cup, the Turkish Women's Cup and the SheBelieves Cup. Since 2016 the SheBelieves Cup has attracted some of the top ranked teams, and thus shifted attention from the Algarve Cup.

Format

Estádio Algarve, one of the stadiums used in the tournament

From 2002 to 2014, 12 teams were invited, with the top eight competing for the championship. The teams were divided into three groups of four — A, B and C. Group C was added in 2002 to provide second-tier teams with high-level match experience every year. The teams first played round-robin within their pool. Then the placement round proceeded as follows:

  • 11th place: The two bottom teams in Group C played one game.
  • 9th place: The Group C runner-up played one game against the lower-ranked of the fourth-place teams from Groups A and B.
  • 7th place: The Group C winner played one game against the higher-ranked of the fourth-place teams from Groups A and B.
  • 5th place: The third-place teams from Groups A and B played one game.
  • 3rd place: The second-place teams from Groups A and B played one game.
  • 1st place: The first-place teams from Groups A and B played one game.

In 2015, Group C teams became eligible for the final, which is now played between the two best group winners.[3] If teams are tied on points, finishing positions will be determined by the following tie-breaking criteria in the following order:[4]

  1. number of points obtained in the matches among the teams in question
  2. goal difference in all the group matches
  3. number of goals scored in all the group matches
  4. fair-play ranking in all the group matches
  5. FIFA ranking

The placement round is now as follows:

  • 11th place match: 3rd best 4th placed team vs. 2nd best 4th placed team
  • 9th place match: best 4th placed team vs. 3rd best 3rd placed team
  • 7th place match: 2nd best 3rd placed team vs. best 3rd placed team
  • 5th place match: 3rd best 2nd placed team vs. 2nd best 2nd placed team
  • 3rd place match: 3rd best group winner vs. best 2nd placed team
  • Final: Best group winner vs. 2nd best group winner

Results

Year Final Third Place Match
Winners Score Runners-up Third Place Score Fourth Place
1994
Norway
1–0
United States

Sweden
1–0
Denmark
1995
Sweden
3–2 (a.e.t.)
Denmark

Norway
3–3 (a.e.t.)
(4–2 p)

United States
1996
Norway
4–0
Sweden

China PR
2–1
Denmark
1997
Norway
1–0
China PR

Sweden
0–0
(6–5 p)

Denmark
1998
Norway
4–1
Denmark

United States
3–1
Sweden
1999
China PR
2–1
United States

Norway
2–2 (a.e.t.)
(4–1 p)

Denmark
2000
United States
1–0
Norway

China PR
1–0
Sweden
2001
Sweden
3–0
Denmark

China PR
5–1
Canada
2002
China PR
1–0
Norway

Sweden
2–1
Germany
2003
United States
2–0
China PR

Norway
1–0
France
2004
United States
4–1
Norway

France
3–3
(4–3 p)

Italy
2005
United States
1–0
Germany

France
3–2
Sweden
2006
Germany
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p)

United States

Sweden
1–0
France
2007
United States
2–0
Denmark

Sweden
3–1
France
2008
United States
2–1
Denmark

Norway
2–0
Germany
2009
Sweden
1–1
(4–3 p)

United States

Denmark
1–0
Germany
2010
United States
3–2
Germany

Sweden
2–0
China PR
2011
United States
4–2
Iceland

Japan
2–1
Sweden
2012
Germany
4–3
Japan

United States
4–0
Sweden
2013
United States
2–0
Germany

Norway
2–2 (a.e.t.)
(3–2 p)

Sweden
2014
Germany
3–0
Japan

Iceland
2–1
Sweden
2015
United States
2–0
France

Germany
2–1
Sweden
2016
Canada
2–1
Brazil

Iceland
1–1
(6–5 p)

New Zealand
2017
Spain
1–0
Canada

Denmark
1–1
(4–1 p)

Australia
2018  Netherlands and  Sweden
The final was cancelled due to heavy rain

Portugal
2–1
Australia
2019
Norway
3–0
Poland

Canada
0–0
(6–5 p)

Sweden
2020
Germany
The final was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.[5]
Italy

Norway
2–1
New Zealand

Rankings

Team Titles Runners-up Third Place Fourth Place Top Four Finishes
 United States 10 (2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015) 4 (1994, 1999, 2006, 2009) 2 (1998, 2012) 1 (1995) 17
 Norway 5 (1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2019) 3 (2000, 2002, 2004) 6 (1995, 1999, 2003, 2008, 2013, 2020) 14
 Germany 4 (2006, 2012, 2014, 2020) 3 (2005, 2010, 2013) 1 (2015) 3 (2002, 2008, 2009) 11
 Sweden 4 (1995, 2001, 2009, 2018) 1 (1996) 6 (1994, 1997, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010) 9 (1998, 2000, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019) 20
 China PR 2 (1999, 2002) 2 (1997, 2003) 3 (1996, 2000, 2001) 1 (2010) 8
 Canada 1 (2016) 1 (2017) 1 (2019) 1 (2001) 4
 Spain 1 (2017) 1
 Netherlands 1 (2018) 1
 Denmark 5 (1995, 1998, 2001, 2007, 2008) 2 (2009, 2017) 4 (1994, 1996, 1997, 1999) 11
 Japan 2 (2012, 2014) 1 (2011) 3
 France 1 (2015) 2 (2004, 2005) 3 (2003, 2006, 2007) 6
 Iceland 1 (2011) 2 (2014, 2016) 3
 Brazil 1 (2016) 1
 Poland 1 (2019) 1
 Portugal 1 (2018) 1
 Italy 1 (2020) 1 (2004) 2
 Australia 2 (2017, 2018) 2
 New Zealand 2 (2016, 2020) 2

Participating nations

Team 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Years
0
 Australia 5th 4th 4th 3
 Austria 10th 11th 11th 3
 Belgium 5th 6th 2
 Brazil 7th 2nd 2
 Canada 5th 4th 8th 7th 1st 2nd 5th 3rd 8
 Chile 11th 1
 China PR 3rd 2nd 5th 1st 3rd 3rd 1st 2nd 6th 7th 6th 10th 9th 5th 4th 7th 9th 6th 5th 12th 10th 11h 12th 23
 Denmark 4th 2nd 4th 4th 2nd 4th 6th 2nd 6th 9th 7th 6th 9th 2nd 2nd 3rd 5th 6th 5th 7th 6th 6th 7th 3rd 10th 6th 5th 27
 England 9th 8th 2
 Faroe Islands 12th 1
 Finland 6th 5th 8th 6th 8th 8th 7th 7th 7th 6th 9th 10th 7th 6th 8th 7th 8th 10th 18
 France 4th 3rd 3rd 4th 4th 2nd 6
 Germany 4th 2nd 1st 8th 4th 4th 2nd 1st 2nd 1st 3rd 1st 12
 Greece 8th 11th 2
 Hungary 12th 10th 2
 Iceland 6th 7th 9th 7th 6th 9th 2nd 6th 9th 3rd 10th 3rd 9th 9th 9th 15
 Republic of Ireland 11th 10th 11th 12th 11th 5
 Italy 7th 4th 7th 6th 2nd 5
 Japan 3rd 2nd 5th 2nd 9th 6th 6th 7
 Mexico 9th 8th 8th 3
 Netherlands 6th 5th 6th 5th 1st 11th 6
 New Zealand 4th 4th 2
 North Korea 8th 1
 Northern Ireland 12th 12th WD 2
 Norway 1st 3rd 1st 1st 1st 3rd 2nd 5th 2nd 3rd 2nd 5th 5th 5th 3rd 9th 6th 5th 7th 3rd 10th 5th 11th 7th 1st 3rd 26
 Poland 11th 11th 2nd 3
 Portugal 5th 8th 7th 8th 7th 7th 8th 8th 11th 10th 8th 11th 11th 12th 10th 8th 10th 9th 10th 11th 12th 11th 8th 12th 3rd 10th 8th 27
 Romania 7th 12th 2
 Russia 5th 9th 6th 8th 12th 5
 Scotland 10th 5th 2
 South Korea 7th 1
 Spain 1st 7th 2
 Sweden 3rd 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 6th 4th 1st 3rd 5th 5th 4th 3rd 3rd 5th 1st 3rd 4th 4th 4th 4th 4th 7th 1st 4th 7th 26
  Switzerland 8th 8th 2
 United States 2nd 4th   3rd 2nd 1st 6th 5th 1st 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st 3rd 1st 7th 1st 20
 Wales 12th 12th 10th 12th 8th 8th 12th 7
Total (36 teams) 6 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 12 12 12 12 11 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 8 12 12 12 8

General statistics

As of 2019.

Rank Team Part Pld W D L GF GA Dif Pts
1  United States 207956111217362+111179
2  Sweden 2597492226175104+71169
3  Norway 2597501433168107+61164
4  Denmark 26102401448139144−5134
5  China PR 2391351442106109−3119
6  Portugal 2610025165898197−9994
7  Germany 1144292139435+5989
8  Iceland 15592111277593−1874
9  Canada 83117595135+1656
10  Japan 728161114536+949
11  France 62413293435−141
12  Finland 1871895445165−12033
13  Wales 72895143147−1632
14  Netherlands 62293102634−830
15  Italy 4169162526−128
16  Republic of Ireland 5194871828−1020
17  Mexico 3115241815+317
18  Australia 3124531514+117
19  Russia 52052131641−2517
20  Brazil 28512157+816
21  Spain 27511104+616
22  Austria 3125162017+316
23  Greece 28422911−214
24  England 284132112+913
25  Romania 28431135+813
26  Scotland 27403910−112
27  Poland 3113261220−811
28  North Korea 1430164+29
29  Hungary 28215714−77
30  Belgium 1420284+46
31  New Zealand 141212205
32  South Korea 1311145−14
33   Switzerland 1411259−44
34  Northern Ireland 28107419−153
35  Chile 1402225−32
36  Faroe Islands 14004119−180

Best player

Top scorer

References

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