Papua New Guinea’s women’s national team will travel to Morocco in November for the preliminary phase of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 Play-Off Tournament, with the Bilums facing Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei and Ghana as they pursue a historic first appearance at the global competition.
FIFA confirmed on 20 October that the six-nation preliminary tournament will be staged at the Mohammed VI Football Complex in Rabat between 28 November and 5 December 2026.
The announcement provides Papua New Guinea with a confirmed schedule and venue for the next stage of their qualification campaign, following their narrow defeat to New Zealand in the Oceania qualifying final earlier this year.
The Bilums came close to securing automatic qualification when they faced the Football Ferns in Auckland in April, but a 1-0 defeat meant New Zealand claimed Oceania’s direct place at the 2027 World Cup.
Papua New Guinea nevertheless retained an opportunity to qualify through the intercontinental playoff system, which offers a second route to the tournament for an Oceania representative.
Their campaign in Morocco will begin against Uzbekistan on Saturday, 28 November, with kickoff scheduled for 4:30pm local time at Pitch 3 of the Mohammed VI Football Complex.
The Bilums will then face Chinese Taipei on Tuesday, 1 December, at 2pm local time, before completing their preliminary schedule against Ghana on Saturday, 5 December, at 5pm.
The opponents represent three different football environments, giving Papua New Guinea an opportunity to test themselves against teams from Asia and Africa.
The preliminary phase will also feature South Africa and Ecuador, bringing together six national teams competing for two places in the final stage of the qualification tournament.
Unlike a traditional group competition in which every team meets each opponent, each nation will play three matches against selected opponents, with all six teams placed in a combined standings table.
The two highest-ranked teams at the conclusion of the preliminary phase will advance to the final playoff stage in February 2027.
They will join four additional national teams from other confederations, with the six remaining sides competing for the final three places at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
The format means that Papua New Guinea must perform consistently across all three matches, with goal difference and results elsewhere potentially becoming important in determining the final standings.
For the Bilums, the tournament represents another significant opportunity in a period of progress for women’s football in Papua New Guinea.
The national team have long been among the strongest sides in Oceania outside New Zealand, but have yet to qualify for a FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Their performance against the Football Ferns in April demonstrated that they are capable of competing closely with the region’s established leading team, although the challenge now will be to reproduce that competitiveness against opponents from other confederations.
The Morocco tournament will also provide another opportunity for Papua New Guinea’s players to experience international football in a high-performance environment.
The Mohammed VI Football Complex is currently hosting matches at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, making it a familiar venue for major international competitions.
For Papua New Guinea, the goal is clear: finish among the top two teams in the preliminary tournament and advance to the final qualification stage early next year.
With matches against Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei and Ghana now confirmed, the Bilums have a defined pathway towards what would be one of the most important achievements in the country’s football history.
A first appearance at the FIFA Women’s World Cup remains a difficult objective, but the intercontinental playoffs offer Papua New Guinea another opportunity to turn their continental progress into qualification for the global stage.
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