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Hannah Wilkinson Scores First Goal Of 2023 Women's World Cup To Help New Zealand Beat Former Champions Norway

Hannah Wilkinson scored the first goal of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup as New Zealand beat Norway in the tournament's opening game. Watch match highlights.

Robert Summerscales

Hannah Wilkinson Scores First Goal Of 2023 Women's World Cup To Help New Zealand Beat Former Champions Norway
Hannah Wilkinson Scores First Goal Of 2023 Women's World Cup To Help New Zealand Beat Former Champions Norway /

FIFA Women's World Cup co-hosts New Zealand upset the odds by beating Norway in the tournament's opening game on Thursday.

Norway — who won the Women's World Cup in 1995 and had 2018 Ballon d'Or Feminin winner Ada Hegerberg in their starting XI on Thursday — are ranked 14 places higher than New Zealand by FIFA.

But roared on by a crowd of 42,137 — the highest attendance ever for a soccer game in New Zealand — the Football Ferns beat their European opponents 1-0 at Auckland's Eden Park.

Hannah Wilkinson scored the first goal of the tournament in the 48th minute when she found the net from a Jacqui Hand cross.

New Zealand had a golden chance to make it 2-0 late on but Ria Percival, who plays her club soccer for Tottenham, hit the post from a penalty kick.

Highlights: New Zealand 1-0 Norway

Hannah Wilkinson pictured (center) scoring the first goal of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup to help New Zealand beat Norway 1-0 at Eden Park in Auckland
Hannah Wilkinson pictured (center) scoring the first goal of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup to help New Zealand beat Norway 1-0 in Auckland :: IMAGO/Xinhua/Bai Xuefei

This is New Zealand's sixth appearance at a Women's World Cup and they have not yet ever reached the knockout phase.

But they now have a very real chance of progressing from Group A to reach the round of 16.

Switzerland and the Philippines are the other two teams in Group A.

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Robert Summerscales
ROBERT SUMMERSCALES

Robert Summerscales launched FanNation Futbol in February 2022. Rob is a British journalist who previously spent two years on the sports desk at the Daily Mail in London, having earlier served as editor of CaughtOffside.com. He has been to the last two FIFA Men's World Cups, in Russia and Qatar, and is looking forward to completing his hat-trick in North America in 2026.