Central & South America

Mexico vs. Brazil

Defending champions Brazil had to struggle to make the final, beating Mexico 4-1 on penalties after the game ended goalless after extra-time.

Brazil went close to settling their match against Mexico inside 90 minutes when Richarlison struck the post with a glancing header in the 82nd minute.

#OlimpicosTelemundo ¡AL PALOOOOOO !

Defending champions Brazil advanced to the quarter-finals of the men's Olympic soccer tournament after a 3-1 victory over Saudi Arabia on Wednesday helped them top Group D while Ivory Coast booked their berth by sending Germany home.

Japan advanced after delivering the knockout blow to 10-man France with a 4-0 win to stay perfect in Group A. Takefusa Kubo, Hiroki Sakai, Koji Miyoshi and Daizen Maeda all scored for the rampant hosts while Randal Kolo Muani was sent off for France.

For the first time since 2007, Canada is back in the semifinals of the Gold Cup after a commanding 2-0 win over Costa Rica at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Sunday night.  

The immediate consequence is that Canada plays Mexico on Thursday at NRG Stadium in Houston. The long-term implication is that Canada, heading into 2022 World Cup qualifying, can make a serious claim as to now being Concacaf’s third-best team.

Honduras snatched Concacaf’s final spot at the Olympics away from the USMNT in March. Four months later, Los Catrachos did the USMNT proud by dominating a game against Romania and still finding an incredible way to lose 1-0. I’m sure that USMNT players are punching the air while watching the Honduras vs Romania highlights.

Let me remind you why the USMNT isn’t at the Olympics.

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Brazil striker Richarlison struck a stunning hat-trick inside 30 minutes as the defending Olympic champions beat Germany 4-2 in their opening Group D game in the men's tournament at the International Stadium on Thursday.

Brazil should have had the outcome decided by the interval given the amount of chances they created but Germany struck twice in the second half, despite going down to 10 men in the 63rd minute.

Brazil opened its campaign at the Summer Olympics in resounding fashion on Wednesday after dismantling China 5-0 at Miyagi Stadium in Rifu. The Seleção’s goals were scored by Debinha, Andressa Alves, Beatriz and a brace from the legendary Marta.

By finding the net at Tokyo 2020, Marta became the first player ever to score in five straight Olympics. Overall, she now has 12 goals at Olympic Games, moving her two behind former teammate Cristiane at the top of the tournament’s all-time goalscoring list.   

On Tuesday night at Tel Aviv’s Bloomfield Stadium, Real Madrid and Barcelona Legends — at various stages of clearly enjoying their retirement — squared off in an El Clásico that featured players like Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Deco, Roberto Carlos and Luís Figo.

The 41-year-old Ronaldinho was the star of the show as he’s continued the impressive form he showed while in a Paraguayan prison.

Maybe it’s just the nostalgia of waking up in the middle of the night to watch the 2002 World Cup, but something about the idea of throwing my circadian rhythm out of whack to watch soccer fills me with excitement. If you’re like me and want to watch the USWNT and/or Mexico men compete live in Japan this summer, here’s our guide for how to watch Olympic soccer in the U.S. And if you just want to watch the games later at normal human hours Stateside, we’ve got you covered, too.

Thanks to Chaka Rodríguez’s 26th-minute goal, Mexico defeated El Salvador 1-0 on Sunday night and won Gold Cup Group A, meaning that the United States and El Tri can’t possibly meet until the final. 

But based on the evidence of the group stage, if either side overlooks their opponents in the quarterfinals or semifinals, they’re going home.