Ghana, Morocco and 3 African Countries to Reach Olympic Games Semis in Football
- Egypt and Morocco have progressed to the semi-final of the Olympic Games in Paris
- The North African nations join three other countries to ever reach that mark at the Olympic Games
- Ghana is the first African country to win a medal in football at the Olympic Games, making history in 1992
Africa will have at least a medal in Men's football at the Olympic Games in Paris after Morocco and Egypt reached the semi-finals of the multi-sport competitions.
Morocco tore apart the United States, beating them 4-0 to book a date with Spain while Egypt defeated Paraguay 5-4 on penalties in the quarter-final. The Pharaohs will face hosts France on Tuesday in the semi-final.
Source: UGC
Legit.ng looks at the five African countries to reach the semi-final of the Olympic Games.
Ghana - Barcelona 1992
Ghana became the first African country to reach the semi-final of the Olympic Games in Men's football at Barcelona in 1992. The Black Meteors, the U23 team of Ghana, finished top of Group D after beating Australia and drawing with Mexico and Denmark.
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The West Africans went on to beat Paraguay 4-2 after extra time to reach the semi-finals, where they lost to eventual gold medalist, Spain. Ghana finished in third place, becoming the first African team to win a bronze at the Olympic Games in football.
Nigeria - Atlanta 1996, Beijing 2008 and Rio 2016
Nigeria are the most successful African football team at the Olympic Games. With Ghana laying the mark four years earlier at Barcelona, Nigeria became the first African team to win gold in football at the Olympic Games after a young Nwankwo Kanu led the Dream Team to success in the United States.
The West Africans were denied gold in Beijing after Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero led Argentina to triumph, with Nigeria settling for silver. Eight years later in Brazil, Nigeria won bronze in football in Rio.
Cameroon - Sydney 2000
Cameroon became the second African country to win gold in football after a Samuel Eto'o-led team produced some of the best performances the world has seen to win the ultimate. Cameroon finished second in their group before defeating Brazil in the quarter-final. They went on to beat Chile and Spain to be crown gold medalist.
Morocco - Paris 2024
Morocco are the team with the most goals at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, scoring and dominating their opponents with ease. Morocco beat Argentina in their opening game before losing to Ukraine in the match. The Atlas Lions bounced back to beat Iraq 3-0 before cruising to a 4-0 quarter-final victory over the USA. They will face Spain in the semis with a chance at gold or silver in the final at stake.
Egypt - Paris 2024
Egypt were on the verge of getting eliminated with Ibrahim Adel scoring a last-gasp equalizer against Paraguay to force their quarter-final into extra time. The Pharaohs went on to win 5-4 to set up a semi-final clash against the host France. A victory could place them in the gold-silver zone while defeat could leave them fighting for bronze.
Nigeria exit Paris 2024 Olympics
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Super Falcons of Nigeria have been eliminated from the Paris 2024 Olympics women's football event after losing their final Group C game 3-1 against Japan despite Jennifer Echegini’s beautiful goal.
The match was a must-win for both sides to progress to the knockout stage, and Japan could have made do with a draw, but they beat Nigerian women regardless.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
