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2024 Olympics: US men's rugby claims surprise draw over France, men's soccer falls on 1st day
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AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two days before the 2024 Paris Olympics officially open, men's soccer and men's rugby sevens hit the pitch for group-stage matches with mixed results for the United States on Wednesday.
In rugby at Stade de France, the U.S. pulled off perhaps the most surprising result of the first day with a 12-12 draw against the host nation. France entered the tournament No. 4 in the World Rugby rankings while the U.S. at No. 19 so that alone made the tie feel like a win for the Eagles. What amplifies the result even more is France's home-field advantage, but unfortunately for the US, it didn't carry over into the second match of the day against Fiji. The Bati rolled to a 2-0 first day in Pool C with a 38-12 win over the U.S. Fiji is the two-time defending Olympic champion and hasn't lost a match at the Games since rugby returned in 2016.
Pool play ends early Thursday with lower-level placing and some quarterfinal matches in the evening.
The U.S. plays Uruguay in its final Pool C match at 8 a.m. CDT Thursday. A win would almost assure the U.S. of a spot in the quarterfinals. Fiji and France meet Thursday with the winner claiming the pool championship.
The tournament features three pools of four teams with the top two teams from each pool, plus the two strongest third-place teams, advancing to the quarterfinals.
On the soccer pitch at Marseille Stadium, the US was in the game against France until it wasn't. After a scoreless first half, the French side scored three times in the second half to run away with a 3-0 victory to open Group A play. Coached by national soccer legend Thierry Henry, France scored all its goals in the final 30 minutes.
The U.S. was caught offside five times and France held 55% of the possession. France outshot the U.S. 11-9 with a 6-4 edge in shots on target.
The U.S. takes on New Zealand at noon Saturday in its second group match. The U.S. closes group play July 30 against Guinea.