The USA is the first team to qualify for the semi-finals women’s football at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Emma Hayes and her team took on Japan and it did not go as easy as the group stage. Japan proved to be a formidable opponent. The match went to extra time which is not ideal for the players. We will update this article after every match. Spain and Colombia are had to decide the match by penalties. Usme and Salazar missed so Spain is going to the semi-finals. The Spanish came back from 0-2. They scored the equalizer just in time. The next who qualified is Germany. We are just waiting on France vs Brazil at 21:00.
Paris 2024 Olympics Women’s Football Semi-Finals:
- Tuesday the 6th of August 18:00 CEST: Brazil vs Spain – Marseille Stadium
- Tuesday the 6th of August 21:00 CEST: USA vs Germany – Lyon Stadium
USA vs Japan: A boring duel
The first 45 minutes there was not much going on. The battle between the USWNT and Japan was on the midfield. Japan was set up perfectly to block most of the USA’s plans and this led to very little chances. This eventually took the match to extra time. Here it was Trinity Rodman who made a brilliant turn and finished from a tight angle. The cross-field ball that assisted Rodman came from Crystal Dunn.
During the match Emma Hayes was wildly criticized for not chancing her starting IX during any of the matches yet. The players seemed tired and not as sharp as usually. At the end of the extra time Emily Fox got injured to her knee. The defender was in tears and was helped off the pitch by the physios. Hopefully we will soon know more about this.
The USA is the first to qualify for the semi-finals women’s football and will face Germany or Canada in the semi-finals.
Spain vs Colombia: Decided by penalties
The World Champions did not expect a Colombia this strong. The team was very physical and tried to waste time where it could break up Spain’s play. When they had the opportunity to counter, they did it with fantastic speed an perseverance, leaving the Spanish far behind them.
It was Mayra Ramírez in the first half with the 0-1. She just got back from her suspension and the striker had some goalscoring to do. The teams went into the break with 0-1. It did not take Colombia long to double its lead. This time via Leicy Santos.
Spain is the World Champion, so they had to do something. After fighting their way through the Colombian defence, Jenni Hermoso scored the 1-2. She was just subbed on by Montse Tomé. With ten more minutes on the clock Spain had to start looking for the equalizer, otherwise their Paris 2024 Olympics adventure would be over.
Ten minutes of added time after all the time-wasting from Colombia. In the extra time, goalkeeper Tapia gets injured. It seems to be her nose but after 5 dreadful minutes, she gets up. Colombia seems to have killed their own game with all the time-wasting. Irene Paredes scored the equalizer in the 90+7th minute.
In the first half of extra time, both teams were not able to score. The teams are so tired that most are walking and only going for runs if absolutely necessary. You can not blame them. This tournament only allowed 18-players squads and that should be forbidden. These are top players who miss out on rest/holidays and have to run themselves into the ground at the same time.
Penalties Spain vs Colombia
| Spain | Colombia |
1. Caldentey  | 1. Usme  |
| 2. Navarro | 2. Vanegas |
| 3. Paralluelo | 3. Salazar |
| 4. Bonmatí | 4. Jorelyn |
Spain qualified and now has to face Brazil or France in the semi-finals.
Canada vs Germany
Canada vs Germany kicked off at 19:00 CEST. The play is a lot more relaxed compared to Spain vs Colombia. Nearly 40 minutes in and there are no big fouls, cards or many goal attempts. The first half is almost finished and the scoreboard still says 0-0.
In the second half Germany had a great opportunity, via Brand and Schüller but Buchanan stopped the attack in the box with a brilliant tackle. The match is still very quiet. The teams do not want to give away to much. The second half became a lot more interesting after 15 minutes of play. Both teams had major opportunities and Berger proved to be crucial to Germany multiple times.
Canada continued to up the pressure in the last ten minutes of the game. Germany could not close the spaces, only defend and hope for the best. Not a good situation for them.
The extra time started with a great opportunity for Lawrence. As she ran into the box, she turned to her right foot but her shot was blocked by Berger. The goalkeeper has been tremendous the entire match. We are only two minutes away from penalty kicks. Both could have scored multiple times by now. Amazing chances and fun to watch.
Penalties Canada vs Germany
| Canada | Germany |
| 1. Quinn | 1. Gwinn |
| 2. Lawrence | 2. Minge |
| 3. Leon | 3. Lohman |
| 4. Becky | 4. Rauch |
| 5. – | 5. Berger |
Germany qualified and now has to face the USA in the semi-finals.
France vs Brazil
France vs Brazil kicked off at 19:00 CEST. We are 20 minutes in and the scoreboard still says 0-0. It got very exciting when France got a penalty, but Karchaoui’s attempt was saved by the goalkeeper of Brazil, Lorena. The match mainly consists of fouls and little play/attempts on goal.
The second half starts terribly for Brazil. Key defender Rafaelle is injured and needs to be replaced. Tamires came on the pitch for her while Rafaelle was stretchered off. We have 15 minutes of regular time left, if no one scores, we go to extra time….again.
France makes a terrible mistake in the back with only ten more minutes to go. Portihlo profited from it by giving Brazil the lead. 16 minutes of added time is plenty for France to score the equalizer. It is however Brazil that keeps profiting from mistakes in the defense from France. Brazil kept the lead and secured a ticket to the semi-finals, where they will face Spain again.
Where to watch the semi-finals Olympics 2024 Women’s Football?
Watch the Paris 2024 women’s football through the Media Rights Holders (MRHs). MRHs include:
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