Paris 2024 Olympic football: Dates, schedule, teams, format and rules for huge sporting event this summer

THE Paris 2024 Olympics kicks off THIS WEEK – and you won’t have to wait too long for some of your favourite sports to begin.

Football and rugby sevens will get underway two days before the official opening ceremony – and SunSport has all the information you need below.

Brazil beat Spain at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics to claim goldREUTERS

Paris 2024 Olympic football groups

The football events taking place at the Paris 2024 Olympics will run from Wednesday, July 24 to Saturday, August 10.

Men’s Olympic tournament groups:

Group A: France, USA, Guinea, New Zealand

Group B: Argentina, Morocco, Iraq, Ukraine

Group C: Uzbekistan, Spain, Egypt, Dominican Republic

Group D: Japan, Paraguay, Mali, Israel

Women’s Olympic tournament groups:

Group A: France, Colombia, Canada, New Zealand

Group B: USA, Zambia, Germany, Australia

Group C: Spain, Japan, Nigeria, Brazil

Football schedule at Paris 2024 Olympics

Wednesday, July 24

(All men’s teams)

2pm – Argentina vs Morocco (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

2pm – Uzbekistan vs Spain (Parc des Princes, Paris)

4pm – Guinea vs New Zealand (Nice Stadium, Nice)

4pm – Egypt vs Dominican Republic (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

6pm – Iraq vs Ukraine (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

6pm – Japan vs Paraguay (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

8pm – France vs United States (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

8pm – Mali vs Israel (Parc des Princes, Paris)

Thursday, July 25

(All women’s teams)

4pm – Spain vs Japan (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

4pm – Canada vs New Zealand (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

6pm – Germany vs Australia (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

6pm – Nigeria vs Brazil (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

8pm – France vs Colombia (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

8pm – United States vs Zambia (Nice Stadium, Nice)

Saturday, July 27

(All men’s teams)

2pm – Argentina vs Iraq (Lyon Stadium Lyon)

2pm – Dominican Republic vs Spain (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

4pm – Ukraine vs Morocco (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

4pm – Uzbekistan vs Egypt (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

6pm – New Zealand vs United States (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

6pm – Israel vs Paraguay (Parc des Princes, Paris)

8pm – France vs Guinea (Nice Stadium, Nice)

8pm – Japan vs Mali (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

Sunday, July 28

(All women’s teams)

4pm – New Zealand vs Colombia (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

4pm – Brazil vs Japan (Parc des Princes, Paris)

6pm – Australia vs Zambia (Nice Stadium, Nice)

6pm – Spain vs Nigeria (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

8pm – France vs Canada (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

8pm – United States vs Germany (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

Tuesday, July 30

(All men’s teams)

2pm – Spain vs Egypt (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

4pm – Ukraine vs Argentina (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

4pm – Morocco vs Iraq (Nice Stadium, Nice)

6pm – New Zealand vs France (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

6pm – United States vs Guinea (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

8pm – Israel vs Japan (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

8pm – Paraguay vs Mali (Parc des Princes, Paris)

Wednesday, July 31

(All women’s teams)

4pm – Brazil vs Spain (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

4pm – Japan vs Nigeria (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

6pm – Australia vs United States (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

6pm – Zambia vs Germany (Geoffroy-Guichard, St-Etienne)

8pm – New Zealand vs France (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

8pm – Colombia vs Canada (Nice Stadium, Nice)

Friday, August 2

(All men’s teams)

2pm – Group A winner vs Group B runner-up (Parc des Princes, Paris)

4pm – Group D winner vs Group C runner-up (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

6pm – Group C winner vs Group D runner-up (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

8pm – Group A winner vs Group B runner-up (Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux)

Saturday, August 3

(All women’s teams)

2pm – Group B winner vs Group C runner-up (Parc des Princes, Paris)

4pm – Group C winner vs Group A third place or Group B third place (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

6pm – Group A runner-up vs Group B runner-up (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

8pm – Group A winner vs Group B third place of Group C third place (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

Monday, August 5

(All men’s teams)

5pm – Semi-final 1 (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

8pm – Semi-final 2 (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

Tuesday, August 6

(All women’s teams)

5pm – Semi-final 1 (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

8pm – Semi-final 2 (Marseille Stadium, Marseille)

Thursday, August 8

4pm – Men’s Bronze Medal Match (La Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes)

Friday, August 9

2pm- Women’s Bronze Medal Match (Lyon Stadium, Lyon)

5pm – Men’s final (Parc des Princes, Paris)

Saturday, August 10

4pm – Women’s final (Parc des Princes, Paris)

Olympic football rules and format

The rules of Olympic football are the same as in domestic and international football.

Two teams of 11 players will battle it out in a 90-minute match, with the side that scores the most goals claiming the win.

Group matches can end in a draw, but knockout games will go to extra time, then penalties if requried.

16 men’s teams are split into four groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the quarter-finals of the tournament.

There are 12 women’s teams competiting at the Paris 2024 Olympics, with the top two progressing to the knockout stages, along with the two best third-placed teams.

The participating countries can name a squad of 18 players – and they are able to name four players in reserve.

The men’s tournament requires each nation’s squad to have all but three players under the age of 23, while there are no restrictions for the women.

Why do Team GB not have a men’s football team at the Paris 2024 Olympics?

The Olympics is overseen by the International Olympic Committee, unlike the FIFA-governed World Cup and the European Championship.

In FIFA and UEFA competitions, each UK nation (England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland) has its own football association and competes separately.

However, in the IOC the home nations are united under the name Great Britain, collectively earning medals.

British teams had been successful in the early 20th-century Olympic football events winning gold unofficially at Paris 1900, officially at London 1908, and retaining their title at Stockholm 1912.

Over time Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland feared that their independence in FIFA and UEFA tournaments would be jeopardised by competing as a single entity in the Olympics.

As a result, Team GB ceased participating in Olympic men’s football in the 1970s, with a brief exception for the London 2012 Games.

Hosting the games on home soil led to an agreement for a squad comprising 13 English and 5 Welsh players.

There were no Scottish or Northern Irish representatives, and Team GB was eventually eliminated on penalties by South Korea in the quarter-finals.

No similar agreement has been reached for the subsequent three Olympic Games, so England’s victory in last summer’s U21 Euros didn’t secure them a spot in Paris.

Why do Team GB not have a women’s football team at the Paris 2024 Olympics?

Team GB’s women’s squad also competed at London 2012 and, unlike the men’s team, has managed to qualify for subsequent Games.

Although no agreement was reached for Brazil 2016, the women’s team was reformed for Tokyo 2020.

In both editions, they were eliminated in the quarter-finals.

The current agreement among the home nations allows the highest-ranking women’s team among the four to attempt to secure one of the three European spots available for Team GB.

For the 2024 Olympics, England was given the honour of representing Team GB. However, the Lionesses fell short, finishing second in their Nations League group.

Despite a 6-0 victory over Scotland in their final group match, it wasn’t enough to secure a spot at the Games