The 16 best soccer-playing nations across the globe will battle it out for the coveted gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics this summer. However, soccer in the Olympic Games is a little different from other men’s tournaments, which is why we have decided to break it down and make it more accessible for all.
Continue reading to learn all you need to know about soccer in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Soccer In Paris Olympics 2024: The Complete Rundown
Date
The 2024 Paris Olympics will officially get underway on Friday, July 26. Men’s soccer, meanwhile, will commence on July 24 and run until August 10. Soccer has been getting this two-day head start since the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, as there are a lot of matches to accommodate.
Here is the breakdown of the scheduled matches:
Group Stage: July 24 to July 30
Quarter-Finals: August 2
Semi-Finals: August 5
Bronze Medal match: August 8
Gold Medal match: August 9
Venue
A total of seven French cities will host soccer matches during the 2024 Paris Olympics. In addition to the titular city of Paris, the matches will be spread across Decines-Charpieu, Marseille, Bordeaux, Nantes, Nice, and Saint-Etienne. Here is the complete list of stadiums hosting the games:
| Stadium Name | City |
| Parc des Princes | Paris |
| Stade de Lyon | Decines-Charpieu |
| Stade de Marseille | Marseille |
| Stade de Bordeaux | Bordeaux |
| Stade de la Beaujoire | Nantes |
| Stade de Nice | Nice |
| Stade Geoffroy-Guichard | Saint-Etienne |
Rules
Unlike major senior-team tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup, European Championship, and Copa America, managers do not have the luxury of fielding the best players in the country. They can only call upon players who are born on or after 1 January 2001, meaning the squad must consist of players aged 23 or below at the time of the Paris Olympics 2024. However, there is a slight and interesting twist.
Each manager can use three players who are over 23 years old. So, the 18-man squad for each team can have 15 U23 players and three over the cut-off age.
Qualified Teams
A total of 16 teams have qualified for the Paris Olympics. France have qualified as the host country. The United States and the Dominican Republic have come through the 2022 CONCACAF U-20 Championship. Spain, Israel, and Ukraine through the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
Morocco, Egypt, and Mali have qualified via the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations. New Zealand have come through the 2023 OFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament, while Paraguay and Argentina have proceeded after coming out on top in the 2024 CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament.
Lastly, Japan, Uzbekistan, and Iraq came up through the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup, whereas Guinea qualified after winning the AFC-CAF Play-off.
These 16 teams have been broken down into four groups. The top two from each group will qualify for the quarter-finals.
Here are the groups:
Group A: France, United States, Guinea, New Zealand
Group B: Argentina, Morocco, Iraq, Ukraine
Group C: Uzbekistan, Spain, Egypt, Dominican Republic
Group D: Japan, Paraguay, Mali, Israel
Schedule
The 2024 Paris Olympics begins with four group-stage matches on July 24. Uzbekistan-Spain and Argentina-Morocco will be the first two matches. Guinea-New Zealand and Egypt-Dominican Republic will cap off the night.
Click on this link here to get the entire soccer schedule for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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