Olympic soccer draw: Groups set for men's and women's tournaments
The 28 nations participating in soccer at this summer's Olympics in Tokyo learned their respective paths to a gold medal on Wednesday after the group-stage draws for the men's and women's tournaments were completed.
The competition will feature 16 men's teams and 12 on the women's side.
The United States women's national team will meet rival Sweden in the opening round. The Swedes stunned the U.S. five years ago in Rio, eliminating the Americans after a shootout in the quarterfinals. The USWNT is once again the overwhelming favorite in 2021, and the team is looking to back up its World Cup title with an Olympic gold medal.
Canada, with head coach Bev Priestman overseeing her first major tournament since taking the helm, faces a tricky quartet that includes perennial contenders Japan and Great Britain.
Germany, the women's gold medalist in 2016, didn't qualify.
The men's tournament features a tantalizing rematch of the final in Rio, with reigning champion Brazil taking on silver medalist Germany during the group stage. Elsewhere, Argentina and Spain, two decorated nations at the men's youth level, were drawn together in Group C.
Men's Olympic draw
- Group A: Japan, South Africa, Mexico, France
- Group B: New Zealand, Korea Republic, Honduras, Romania
- Group C: Egypt, Spain, Argentina, Australia
- Group D: Brazil, Germany, Ivory Coast, Saudi Arabia
Women's Olympic draw
- Group E: Japan, Canada, Great Britain, Chile
- Group F: China, Brazil, Zambia, Netherlands
- Group G: Sweden, United States, Australia, New Zealand
The soccer tournament during this summer's Olympics will run from July 21 to Aug. 7. In addition to host city Tokyo, matches will also be played in Sapporo, Miyagi, Kashima, Saitama, and Yokohama.