The Olympic soccer tournament kicks off this week in Japan for both men and women. The women’s competition will start on Wednesday, July 21 and the men’s tournament will kick off the following day.
Like all major international soccer tournaments, the Olympic Games give you the chance to wager on high-level matches. However, be warned that the Olympic soccer tournaments, for the men at least, are different than other international competitions.
Men’s Olympic soccer tournament
The men will kick off on Thursday, July 22 with Spain and Egypt playing the first game. The men’s tournament features 16 teams divided into four groups of four. At the end of the group stage in which teams play each other in the group once, the top two nations from each group move onto the knockout stage. From there, the Olympic soccer tournament is a straight knockout cup competition.
There are some rules that you should be aware of for the men’s soccer tournament before wagering. Most importantly is the age limit. Rules dictate that male players must be under-23 and no more than three players per squad can be over 23. This year’s tournament will allow players 24-years-old to compete due to the tournament being postponed one year.
Due to the restrictions on players, the Euros and Gold Cup being played this summer, and players being called back to their club teams already to prepare for the 2021-22 season, the assortment of players on each team is a bit hit and miss. Looking at squads, Spain do have the best set of players available. My verdict is to wager on Spain pre-tournament to win it. However, you can never count out Brazil.
Men’s soccer groups
- Group A
Japan
South Africa
Mexico
France - Group B
New Zealand
South Korea
Honduras
Romania - Group C
Egypt
Spain
Argentina
Australia - Group D
Brazil
Germany
Ivory Coast
Saudi Arabia
What are the odds for the men’s Olympic soccer tournament?
The odds for the tournament are firmly in favour of Spain to win gold. On paper, Spain have the best squad of all the teams. Here are the odds for the top six teams for the men’s soccer tournament courtesy of Bet 365 as of Monday, July 19.
- Spain +200
- Brazil +275
- France +500
- Argentina +800
- Japan +800
- Germany +900
Women’s Olympic soccer tournament
As with every international women’s soccer tournament, the United States are favourites and if anyone else wins the competition, it will be a surprise. Unlike the men’s tournament, just 12 women’s teams will play at the Olympics. The teams will be divided into three groups of four teams with the top two sides in each group and the two-best third-place teams advancing to an eight-team knockout bracket.
The USA have made all but one gold-medal match since the women’s Olympic tournament started in 1996. They have won the tournament on four occasions while Norway and Germany claimed the other two gold medals. The Germans are the reigning Olympic gold medalists, but they failed to qualify for the Summer Games.
The key aspect of the women’s tournament to remember is that there is no age restriction like the men have. Therefore, the USA can select their best players to go for gold.
Women’s soccer groups
- Group E: Japan, Canada, Great Britain, Chile
- Group F: China, Brazil, Zambia, Netherlands
- Group G: Sweden, USA, Australia, New Zealand
What are the odds for the women’s Olympic soccer tournament?
Here is a look at the top six teams in terms of odds for the women’s Olympic soccer tournament according to Bet365 on Monday, July 19.
- USA -175
- Netherlands +600
- Great Britain +800
- Sweden +1200
- Brazil +1400
- Japan
It is really difficult to look past the USA winning the gold medal once more. Of course, the Yanks did not win it last time around. Germany won the 2016 tournament but didn’t qualify for this year’s tournament. The USA last won Olympic soccer gold in 2012. My verdict is the USA will win it once more on the women’s side.
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