The first phase of Concacaf qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027™ is complete and six teams – Costa Rica, El Salvador, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico and Panama – have joined Canada and USA in the 2026 Concacaf W Championship, which serves as the qualifying tournament for Brazil 2027.
The Championship will take place in November-December 2026, and will start straight with the quarter-finals stage. All four semi-finalists will qualify for the Women’s World Cup. The losing quarter-finalists will take part in play-off matches to determine the two teams who will participate in the FIFA Play-Off Tournament.
Each of the six qualifiers got special performances from a player that helped pave the way to reaching the final eight. FIFA take a look at those who stood out.
Priscila Chinchilla, Costa Rica
While plenty of players excelled in Costa Rica’s four matches – including a five-goal, four-assist campaign for Sheika Scott – the numbers amassed by Chinchilla defy belief. She finished with 12 goals, including an astounding seven-goal haul in the 21-0 victory against Cayman Islands. But she also came through when the pressure was on, namely in a tricky visit to Grenada in which Las Ticas needed a Chinchilla brace to rally from an early deficit to topple the Spice Girlz, 2-1. She also collected an assist and created 11 chances for the Central Americans, who hope to qualify for a third World Cup.
Brenda Ceren, El Salvador
The importance of Ceren to El Salvador cannot be understated. The youngest of four siblings from a footballing family put Las Cuscatlecas on her back and bagged a brace in a 2-0 win at Trinidad and Tobago on the final matchday to qualify her country for the final stage of qualifying for the first time. The 27-year-old Atlas player finished El Salvador’s three matches with five goals and four assists, meaning she had a hand in half of El Salvador’s 18 goals.
Roseline Eloissaint, Haiti
Despite the absence of superstar attacker Melchie Dumornay for their final two matches, Haiti overcame that hurdle and reached the W Championship thanks in large part to Eloissaint. The Nantes midfielder was as consistent as they come, scoring two goals, including the crucial opener in a narrow 2-0 win at Suriname on matchday two. She also chipped in with an assist in the 5-0 victory over Anguilla and was among the team leaders in chances created.
Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw, Jamaica
Shaw never fails to rise to the occasion for the Reggae Girlz, evidenced by her 66 goals in 48 career appearances. Just like she did in the first phase of preliminaries for Women’s World Cup 2023, Shaw scored in each of Jamaica’s four matches and finished with nine goals overall. Her finest display came in a crunch away contest against Nicaragua in which her brace helped earn a hard-fought 3-2 victory. She was also fundamental to her team’s playmaking in contributing an assist and creating 12 chances. No doubt with Shaw in form, Jamaica will fancy their chances at a third consecutive Women’s World Cup.
Charlyn Corral, Mexico
While Mexico enjoyed some brilliant performances, including Alice Soto’s eye-popping seven assists, it was Corral who stood out the most, leading all players with 13 goals. She hit the ground running with a seven-goal haul in the opening 14-0 win against St. Vincent and the Grenadines and never looked back. The veteran striker went on to bag a brace in each of the next three matches against Saint Lucia, US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. She also contributed an assist as Mexico took a step closer to their first Women’s World Cup since Canada 2015.
Ericka Arauz, Panama
Arauz was not part of the Panama squad that made their Women’s World Cup debut in 2023, but she is making a strong case for inclusion should Las Canaleras return to the global finals. She had a brace in the 6-1 triumph over Curaçao and then came through in the clutch in the finale against Cuba, notching another two goals to clinch Panama’s place in the final eight. She also added an assist and formed a dynamic duo in attack with striker Riley Tanner.
Photos courtesy of Concacaf
