Paris 2024 women’s football: Quarter-final preview, schedule and how to watch
From 12 teams down to eight, the women’s Olympic football quarter-finals are here at Paris 2024.
The top two teams from the four groups have booked their spot in the knockout stages of the tournament, alongside the two best-ranked third-placed nations, taking one step closer to the medals podium.
The United States Women's National Team (USWNT) and Spain came into the final group games having already punched their ticket to the quarter-finals, leaving six spots up for grabs for the remaining 12 sides to contest.
Japan and Germany were the next two sides to progress, coming second in Group C and Group B, respectively.
Wins for France (2-1 over New Zealand) and Canada (1-0 over Colombia) on Wednesday 31 July meant they took the final spots among the teams that finished in the top two of their respective groups.
For Brazil and Colombia, meanwhile, it was a nervous waiting game for confirmation of their progression as the best-ranked third-placed teams.
Group C winners Spain.
Women's Olympic football at Paris 2024: Quarter-final clashes
With 12 of the best nations in the world qualifying for Paris 2024, we were bound to see some huge match-ups as the field was almost halved to eight.
The conclusion of Group C, swiftly followed by Group B, gave us the first crucial ties of the quarter-final stage.
Four-time Olympic champions the United States will take on Japan in what will be the 41st meeting between the two sides since the 1980s.
The pair met in the gold medal match at London 2012, which the Americans narrowly won 2-1. Japan have yet to match that achievement, while for the USA it was the last year they topped the podium.
Hosts France edged past New Zealand on 31 July, beating them 2-1 to finish top of Group A. They will take on one of the best-ranked third-placed teams in Brazil. South American icon Marta will be unavailable for this blockbuster clash, having received a straight red card in her country's 2-0 loss to Spain, also on 31 July.
Canada are arguably the tale of the tournament so far, bouncing back from a six-point deduction (for using a drone to scout their opponent) to incredibly finish second in their group. It won't get much easier for the reigning Olympic champions, though, as they take on Germany in the last eight.
The Europeans are looking to match their dream run from Rio 2016, which topped the podium.
Despite a 1-0 loss to Canada on 31 July, Colombia have made history in Paris by making it out of the group stages for the very first time. They finished third in Group A, but a better goal difference than Australia means it is they who take on world champions Spain in the quarter-finals.
KIara Buhl and Alex Popp of Germany.
Women’s Olympic football at Paris 2024: Schedule and how to watch
Here are the clashes in the last eight of the competition…
Saturday 3 August
- 15:00 CET: USWNT v Japan
- 17:00 CET: Spain v Colombia
- 19:00 CET: Canada v Germany
- 21:00 CET: France v Brazil
All the action from Paris 2024 can be watched via media rights holders (MRHs).
MRHs include France Télévisions in France, NBC in the United States, SKY NZ in New Zealand, Discovery Eurosport across Europe, Fuji TV/NHK/Nippon TV/TBS/TV Asahi/TV Tokyo in Japan, ARD/ZDF in Germany, the BBC in the United Kingdom, SuperSport in South Africa and Nine in Australia.
Check out the listings for your local broadcaster here.