Today's Olympic links below the jump:
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Oh, Canada
Although I’m usually a critic of the fluffy way the team is normally covered, this article is nice.
It’s the Olympics, colour pieces about how wonderfully Canadian and nice our athletes are, and how they all possess an immeasurable team spirit, are what people want to read. And, the ceeb delivers.
If you want a bitter take from a bitter man you can always read my theScore piece.
Yankee watch
There are many in the USA that are content with the status quo in women’s football. Why mess with what works?
There are others that see the writing on the wall and realize that the USA cannot rely on physical dominance much longer. They need to step up their technical game or they will be left behind.
For the latter group, today’s match against France represents a chance to watch the past (USA) of women’s football play the future (France), right at the moment that the two styles are equally as effective.
The Christian Science Monitor breaks it down.
Do yourself a favour and try and watch the USA v France game today. It very well could be a gold medal game preview.
It’s not just about CONCACAF
Since we know very little about Canada’s next opponent we may as well read a preview of South Africa heading into its game against Sweden
What about the men?
Spots and politics aren’t supposed to mix, but they do. To that end, one of the more interesting storylines in the men’s tournament has to be Eqypt.
You can read a preview of the Egyptian team here.
Even beyond the geopolitics, Egypt is an enigma – so strong at the African Cup of Nations, yet never having a breakthrough at a world level. Can London be that breakthrough?