Brazil delivered a historic upset as they defeated Spain in the 2024 Olympic semifinals on Tuesday, 4-2. Spain, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup champions, were considered heavy favorites to compete for the gold medal but were eliminated by a side that failed to make it out of the group stage of the 2023 World Cup but rallied around their veteran star. The Brazilians exposed Spain in transition throughout the Olympic semifinal and defeated La Roja to stamp their place in the Olympic final against the U.S. women’s national team on Saturday.
The semifinal was a rematch of the group stage between the two sides where Spain defeated Brazil 2-0 nearly a week ago. The storylines around Brazil heading into the semifinal framed them as underdogs and centered around the absence of Marta. The iconic Brazilian national team player said earlier this year that 2024 would be her final run with the national team. The longtime forward received a red card for a dangerously high boot to the head of Spain’s Olga Carmona in the group stage finales and…
