The game the world has been waiting for, either anxiously or excitedly or a little bit of both, has finally arrived. In a showdown truly made for the final, the United States are set to play France in a quarterfinal match on Friday in Paris.

Megan Rapinoe, forward for the USA, expressed the sentiment running through everyone’s head, “I hope it’s huge and crazy. That’s what it should be. This is the best game, this is what everybody wanted. I think we want it. Seems like they’re up for it. [The media] of course are up for it, and all the fans. I hope it’s just a total shitshow circus. It’s gonna be totally awesome. I think this is what everybody wants and these are the biggest games that you dream about as a kid.”

Rapinoe’s wish may be coming true as fans flood to Paris in preparation for a match between giants. Ticket prices are soaring, with one seller listing tickets for more than $11,000 and many ticket prices hovering between $2,000 and $3,000 (ESPN).

There’s a reason this game is attracting so much attention. For one thing, these two teams probably have the strongest fan base in the tournament, leading to a competitive market for tickets and a sold out game. The United States and France are ranked first and fourth in the world, respectively, by FIFA and are considered strong contenders to win the tournament.

However, their World Cup runs so far have not been perfect. The United States had a dominating group stage performance with three shutouts, but their play during their match against Spain left a lot of unanswered questions. Spain may have showed the world the road map to breaking down the American side. 

France started their World Cup run with an intimidating 4-0 victory over South Korea, but since then have struggled to impress. They defeated Norway and Nigeria by just one goal in each game and can thank VAR for help in both matches. Against Brazil, they depended on a goal by Amandine Henry in overtime to get them into the quarterfinal stage.

Ultimately, both teams did what they needed to do to advance and that’s all that matters. It’s unlikely they’ll look back on previous matches, but we can take a quick look back at their past World Cup performances.

The teams have very different histories in the Women’s World Cup. France's best finish at the World Cup was fourth place (2011) whereas the United States has won three times and never placed lower than third. Should the United States win the tournament, coach Jill Ellis would become the first coach to win consecutive titles and the USWNT would become the second team to do so (Germany won in both 2003 and 2007). If France wins it all, they will become the first country to win both the Men’s and Women’s World Cup in back-to-back years. The United States are the only country who has hosted the tournament and won (1999).

Against each other, the tallies are a bit closer. According to USA today, the teams have met 23 times and the United States have gone unbeaten in 20 of those matches. However, two of France’s victories have come in the last three games, including their most recent duel in January when France conquered the United States 3-1. This match made France the only team to beat the U.S. in 28 games, a streak dating back to July 2017.

France has been gifted an extra day of recuperation compared to the United States but U.S. players aren’t backing down from the challenge. Rose Lavelle said it best following the United States’ defeat of Sweden, “I think if you’re scared to play in a Women’s World Cup you honestly don’t deserve to win it.”

The game starts at 3pm ET on June 28th and is available on Fox Sports. Be sure to tune in and pay attention! With a sold out stadium, two extraordinarily talented teams, and the tournament on the line, this game is sure to be the most exciting of the World Cup so far.