Paris 2024: To-be-determined CAF representatives draw US in Women’s category
The United States will face CAF Qualifier (Morocco or Zambia), Germany and Australia in Group B at the 2024 Olympic Women’s Soccer Tournament, taking place from July 25-Aug. 10 in seven cities and at seven venues throughout France.
The Olympic Final Draw took place this evening at the headquarters of the Paris 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee in Saint-Denis.
Germany, which earned its Olympic berth by finishing third in the 2024 UEFA Women’s National League, is currently fifth in the current FIFA Women’s World Rankings while Australia is 12th. Morocco and Zambia will meet in a two-leg playoff during the April international window with the winner qualifying for the 2024 Olympics. Morocco is ranked 58th in the world and is looking to make its Olympic debut while Zambia is ranked 65th and debuted at the delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021. The USA is ranked fourth in the world.
The U.S. will open Group B play on July 25 – one day before the Olympic Opening Ceremonies – against either Morocco or Zambia (9 p.m. local / 3 p.m. ET) at Stade de Nice in Nice. The Americans will then travel to Marseille to their second match at Stade de Marseille and will face Germany on July 28 (9 p.m. local / 3 p.m. ET). The USA will finish group play against Australia on July 31 (7 p.m. local / 1 p.m. ET) at Stade de Marseille. Located in the south for France, Nice is nearly 600 miles from Paris near France’s border with Monaco and Italy. Marseille, located 125 miles west of Nice, is the second-largest city in France.
For the first time since 2008, two American teams will be competing in the Olympics as the Under-23 Men’s Youth National Team also qualified for Paris. The young Americans were drawn into Group A and will play their second group stage match against New Zealand on July 27 in Marseille, one day before the American women face Germany at the same venue.
The USA’s draw pits the Americans against two teams it has faced frequently on the world stage along with one first time opponent in either Zambia or Morocco.
The USA and Germany, who along with Norway are the only nations to have won both a FIFA Women’s World Cup and Olympic Gold Medal, have met five times previously at world championship events but only once prior at the Olympics. That matchup came in the 2004 Olympic semifinals where the USA prevailed 2-1 in extra time behind a goal from 19-year-old Heather O’Reilly.
Drawn in the same group for the second consecutive Olympics, the USA and Australia played twice during the delayed Tokyo Olympics. After a 0-0 draw in the final group stage match, the USA and Matildas squared off again in the bronze medal match, which the USA won 4-3 behind braces from now-retired legends Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe. The USA and Australia were also drawn into the same group at the 2004 Olympics, playing to a 1-1 draw.
Drawn into Group A with host France were Colombia, Canada and New Zealand. Group B will consist of Spain, Japan, Brazil and the other CAF qualifier, which will be either Nigeria or South Africa.
While Morocco and Zambia are still in the midst of qualification, Germany and Australia both secured their spots in Paris 2024 during the February 2024 international window. Australia qualified for its third consecutive Olympics by defeating Uzbekistan 13-0 on aggregate in the Third Round of the AFC Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament while Germany, the 2016 Olympic gold medalists, qualified for their first Olympics since their title run in Rio by beating the Netherlands 2-0 in the UEFA Women’s Nations League Third-Place Playoff Match on Feb. 28.
The Olympic Women’s Football Tournament features 12 teams, with the top two finishers in each group advancing to the quarterfinals along with the two best third-place teams. Should the U.S. advance to the second round by winning Group B it would meet the second-place team from Group C in Paris in the quarterfinal If the USA finishes second in the group, it would face the second-place team from Group A in Marseille. A third-place finish could mean a possible meeting with the first-place team from Group A or C.
Just six teams return from the 2021 Olympic Women’s Soccer Tournament in the USA, Brazil, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with a possible seventh being Zambia if the Copper Queens qualify out of Africa. All three European teams in this Olympic tournament – France, Spain and Germany – did not compete in the delayed 2021 Olympics in Japan. Spain, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup champions, will be participating in its first Olympic women’s soccer tournament. Spain is the only team to qualify thus far which will be making its Olympic debut, but Morocco, which faces Zambia in a two-leg series in April for one of two Olympic berths from Africa, could be a second.
The U.S. Women’s National Team has played 15 matches in France during its history, seven coming in the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, including the famous 2-1 victory over France in the quarterfinals in Paris at Parc des Princes, and five other matches against France, those coming in 1991, 1995, 2015, 2019 and 2021. The USA also faced Canada and Italy in France in 1995 at the Tournoi International Feminin and played England in France in 1991.
