As the host nation of the 2024 Olympic Games, France is once again taking to the pitch in pursuit of their maiden major international trophy.
Under the expert stewardship of Hervé Renard, Les Bleues will be confident of a winning start despite suffering a surprising 3-1 defeat against the Republic of Ireland in their most recent 2024/25 UEFA Women’s Nations League qualification match on July 16.
Prior to that defeat, Les Bleues had lost only one of their previous six matches.
With such form in the record books, Renard’s side—which includes the likes of captain Wendy Renard, Sakina Karchaoui, Kadidiatou Diani, and Marie-Antoinette Katoto—is eager to leave the dressing room and get onto the field.
Like France, Colombia enters the match after a recent loss, having fallen 2-0 to Ecuador on July 13. However, they claimed consecutive victories over Venezuela (2-0 and 3-0) at the end of May and the start of June.
Las Cafeteras currently sit second in Group B of their 2024/25 CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup qualification campaign, trailing only fellow 2024 Olympic participants Brazil, with six points after three games.
Information and Where to Watch
The match will take place on July 25, 2024, at 20:00 (21:00 local time) at the Groupama Stadium in Décines-Charpieu, Lyon.
Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch all of the tournament action, including Thursday’s contest, on Eurosport and Discovery+.
Comments from Inside the Camps
Ahead of France’s opening match of the 2024 Olympic Games, captain Wendy Renard spoke candidly about Les Bleues’ quest for a major international honor:
“When I speak to some of my foreign teammates, they don’t understand it. Sometimes it’s a question of luck, sometimes it’s that one or two centimeters’ worth of effort that we weren’t able to put in, and sometimes we weren’t able to close down the passing angles well enough.”
“I think there’s a bit of fear on the part of the teams we face because we’re so well-rounded. But when we look back at the matches in which we were knocked out, we weren’t missing a lot. It’s the little details that send you home.”
Considering their superior FIFA World Ranking (2nd compared to 22nd) and the backing of a hopeful home crowd, France will enter their opening match of the tournament as favorites.
They are expected to get their 2024 Olympic Games campaign off to a winning start against a determined Colombian outfit.
Predicted Starting Line-ups
France: Pauline Peyraud-Magnin; Élisa De Almeida, Maëlle Lakrar, Wendy Renard (c), Sakina Karchaoui; Grace Geyoro, Amandine Henry; Kadidiatou Diani, Kenza Dali, Eugénie Le Sommer; Marie-Antoinette Katoto.
Colombia: Katherine Tapia; Carolina Arias, Jorelyn Carabalí, Daniela Arias, Manuela Vanegas; Ilana Izquierdo Zanger, Liana Salazar, Daniela Montoya (c); Catalina Usme, Linda Caicedo, Mayra Ramírez.
Featured image courtesy of Zakarie Faibis via Wikimedia Commons. No changes were made to this image. License details found here.
