Olympics

The defending World Cup and Olympic champions USWNT have set their 18-player squad that will head to Rio in a few weeks. Jill Ellis has picked a group that includes most of the mainstays (Carli Lloyd, Hope Solo, etc.) and some good young players (Mallory Pugh).

The biggest surprise is probably Heather O'Reilly, a fixture in every major tournament since 2004, not making the cut, instead being selected as an alternate. Also, Megan Rapinoe has made the team after rapidly recovering from a torn ACL.

Having played for Mexico at the 2015 U-20 World Cup in New Zealand and having smoothly transitioned from Queretaro to Chivas in Liga MX, it was widely reported that Orbelin Pineda would make the natural progression to El Tri’s U-23 setup for the Olympic Games. However, Pineda, still only 20 years old, was omitted from Mexico’s roster for the Rio Games.

Mexico have announced the U-23 squad, along with three overage players, that will represent El Tri at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. Having won the gold medal at the previous Olympics in London in 2012, this Mexico squad will be looking to defend their title with the likes of Oribe Peralta, Alfredo Talavera, Erick “Cubo” Torres and Jorge Torres Nilo.

Peralta, Talavera and Nilo represent the three over-23 players for Mexico. 

Megan Rapinoe has been repeatedly forthcoming about her chances of making the United States women’s Olympic squad. There’s simply too much at stake with regards to her career to rush back after her third serious knee injury. However, it’s impossible not to get excited about the news that Rapinoe has returned to training with the USWNT. 

We can't wait for the Olympics. Rio is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and Brazil is sure to be a wonderful host. It's going to be a safe and fun Olympic games for all involved!

 her name is Rio she goes dancing in the sand  we cleaned the swimming pool and found a severed hand  https://t.co/WESyrYV9sD

— actioncookbook (@actioncookbook) July 5, 2016

After their latest Copa America fiasco, the Brazilian National Team will be looking to bounce back as soon as possible, and what better way to do it than on their home turf in August?

The only major competition the Selecao has yet to win, the Olympics, is next up on their schedule, and the key factor that might lead the host nation to glory in Rio will be one player’s experience. 

The US women’s national team will take to the pitch in Rio this summer wearing a distinctly different home kit from the ones debuted with the new US Soccer badge earlier this year. 

This kit was designed specifically for use in the Olympics because of an Olympic charter that mandates the absence of federation crests. Instead, the USA’s controversial new ‘Captain America’ crest will be replaced with simple “USA” lettering.

The U-23 Mexico youth national team endured a disappointing campaign in the Toulon World Youth Festival as they slumped to a fourth-placed finish behind Mali, Czech Republic and group winners, France. They managed a solitary win against bottom of the table Bulgaria, but their overall performance does not inspire hope for the upcoming Olympics in Rio this summer. 

When former Marine Jake Sully first entered his Na’vi-human hybrid in the 2009 sci-fi film Avatar, he couldn’t control his excitement — he delighted in his newfound athleticism while embracing the pastoral beauty of the planet Pandora. It was a scientific breakthrough, the likes of which hadn't been replicated up until yesterday. Yesterday, Neymar had his own Jake Sully moment.

Brazilian World Cup winner Rivaldo has warned tourists to stay away from Rio De Janeiro for the upcoming Rio Olympics that are set to take place this summer. 

The Brazilian legend cited the increase of violence and political turmoil as reasons to stay away from Brazil.