In a significant victory, Denmark secured their place in the knockout stage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup by defeating Haiti 2-0. The team’s captain, Pernille Harder, scored her first-ever goal in the tournament with a first-half penalty.
This victory marks the end of a long drought for Denmark, as they last advanced to the knockout stage in 1995. England, after a dominant 6-1 win against China, topped Group D and will face Nigeria in Brisbane on Monday. Meanwhile, Denmark, as runners-up, will meet Australia in Sydney.
Expressing her pride in the team’s achievement, Harder told reporters, “I’m so proud of the girls and of the team that we made it through the group stages, it’s been a long time since a Danish team did that in a World Cup.”
Denmark started the match with enthusiasm, and although a third-minute goal by defender Simone Boye was initially ruled offside by VAR, they remained undeterred. In the 21st minute, Haiti midfielder Dayana Pierre-Louis conceded a penalty for handball, allowing Harder to calmly slot the ball into the bottom-left corner from the spot.
Harder could have added to her tally with two more goals, but her 45th-minute effort was ruled offside, and an 83rd-minute header was disallowed due to a foul by forward Signe Bruun on the Haitian goalkeeper Kerly Theus outside the box.
Haiti, ranked 55th in the world, displayed great spirit in their pursuit of an equalizer, dominating periods after the break. However, the experience of the 18th-ranked Danes proved decisive, and substitute Sanne Troelsgaard sealed the result with a goal in stoppage time.
For Haiti, their first World Cup campaign ended winless from three games. Despite the defeats, their coach, Nicolas Delepine, expressed pride in the team’s performance and optimism for the future.
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