The women’s Olympic football tournament will kick off on Thursday with 12 teams eying the winner’s podium. The U.S. women’s national team will try and improve on their Tokyo bronze medal with new head coach Emma Hayes. While Spain, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup champions, are considered heavy favorites for the gold medal.
Alongside tournament hosts France, and reigning gold medalists Canada, any team can play spoiler. Eight of the 12 teams will claim spots in the quarterfinals and anything can happen in the knockout rounds.
Olympic men’s soccer gets underway on Wednesday with the first round of group stage games ahead of what promises to be an intriguing tournament rich with talent. From the Paris Games’ host nation France to the USA U-23 team, there are a number of contenders for the gold medal including UEFA Euro 2024 winners Spain with La Roja targeting a men’s double. With previous winners Brazil not even present, there will be no title defense as the games play out largely away from the French capital because of the need for the main soccer venue — Stade de France — for the other disciplines. The next three weeks promise to continue your summer soccer fix in style and we try to foresee how…
