Women's ODI World Cup Winners: Full History 1973–2022
Australia have dominated the Women's ODI World Cup, winning eight titles. England won the inaugural 1973 edition and three more. New Zealand claimed one title in 2000. A complete history of every Women's World Cup winner.
The World's Oldest Women's Cricket Tournament
The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup predates the men's equivalent by two years — the inaugural tournament was held in 1973 in England, two years before the first Men's Cricket World Cup in 1975. England won the first edition, cementing women's cricket's place in the international calendar decades before the sport received the institutional support and broadcast attention it has earned in recent years. The tournament has grown from a small-scale invitation event to a full ICC-hosted competition with qualification pathways, prize money, and global television coverage.
Winners Year by Year
England won the 1973 inaugural edition. Australia then dominated from 1978: winning in 1978, 1982, and 1988, before England broke the sequence with their 1993 win. Australia returned to win in 1997. New Zealand claimed their only title in 2000 in Christchurch, defeating Australia in the final. Australia then won in 2005 in South Africa, England in 2009 (beating New Zealand in the final), Australia again in 2013 in India. England hosted and won in 2017, beating India in the Lord's final in a dramatic match decided by Anya Shrubsole's 6-wicket haul. Australia won the 2022 World Cup in New Zealand, with Alyssa Healy scoring a remarkable 170 in the final against England.
Australia's Dominance
Australia's dominance of the Women's ODI World Cup is unmatched in any ICC tournament across men's or women's cricket — even the men's Australian team has not won 8 World Cups in any format. The reasons are systemic: Cricket Australia's investment in women's cricket, state-based domestic structures, and a deep pool of technically excellent batting and bowling talent. Players like Belinda Clark, Karen Rolton, Meg Lanning, Ellyse Perry, and Alyssa Healy have produced exceptional individual contributions across multiple cycles. Australia's batting depth, bowling variety, and fielding standards are consistently higher than the rest of the field.
England's 2017 Victory: The Lord's Final
England's 2017 Women's World Cup victory — won at Lord's before a record crowd of 26,500 — was the most significant women's cricket event ever staged in England. India had led by 35 runs with 6 wickets in hand chasing 229 when Anya Shrubsole took 6/46 in one of the most dramatic bowling spells in any World Cup final. England won by 9 runs. The match is credited with accelerating ECB's investment in women's cricket, the creation of professional women's domestic contracts, and the broader movement toward equality in the England cricket structure.
Alyssa Healy's 170 in 2022
The 2022 Women's World Cup Final in Christchurch saw Australia's Alyssa Healy score 170 off 138 balls against England — the highest individual score in a Women's World Cup final. Australia won by 71 runs. Healy's innings was the product of years of development as Australia's wicketkeeper-opener, combining extraordinary stroke-making with near-perfect match awareness. The innings set the benchmark for what a batting performance in a World Cup final can look like — an immediate all-formats contender for the greatest individual women's cricket innings in history.
Frequently asked questions
Who has won the Women's Cricket World Cup the most times?
Australia have won the Women's ODI World Cup 8 times — in 1978, 1982, 1988, 1997, 2005, 2010 (sometimes counted differently), 2013, and 2022. England have won 4 editions (1973, 1993, 2009, 2017) and New Zealand 1 (2000).
Who scored the highest individual score in a Women's World Cup final?
Alyssa Healy scored 170 off 138 balls for Australia against England in the 2022 Women's ODI World Cup Final in Christchurch. Australia won by 71 runs. It is the highest individual score in any Women's Cricket World Cup final.
When was the first Women's Cricket World Cup?
The first Women's Cricket World Cup was held in 1973 in England — two years before the first Men's Cricket World Cup in 1975. England won the inaugural edition, making women's cricket the pioneer of the Cricket World Cup concept.