Men’s Olympic football at Paris 2024: Semi-final preview

France have taken a monumental step towards a guaranteed medal at their home Games.

In a fierce showdown against Argentina, a game that carried the weight of a senior team rivalry, it was the French who came out on top to set up a last-four clash with Egypt, winning 1-0.

The Egyptians, meanwhile, have reached the semi-final stage of the Olympics for the first time in their history after beating Paraguay on penalties.

Monday, 5 August will mark the first notable meeting between these two nations since 2003 when the first-team sides played out a friendly that ended in a 5-0 win for the French.

There is an added incentive for the manager of the hosts, Theirry Henry, who desperately wants to deliver on home soil in a tournament he never had the privilege of playing in.

The second semi-final will see surprise package Morocco take on Spain. The former dispatched the Americans in a thumping 4-0 win, while the latter saw off Japan with three unanswered goals.

As far as the senior team is concerned, the most recent meeting between this pair came at the 2022 FIFA World Cup when the African nation pulled off a dramatic round-of-16 victory on penalties.

The Spanish know what it takes to top the podium, doing so in 1992 on home soil. For Morocco, however, this is uncharted territory.

Before Paris, this is a side that had never even made it out of the groups before. Could this unbelievable dream run take them to the final?