Men’s Soccer Gold Medal Match, Breaking’s Debut Headline Friday’s Olympics Schedule

France and Spain will face off on the pitch while a much-discussed sport begins in Paris.

Alexandre Lacazette of France celebrates scoring their first goal against USA during a men's Group A football match during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Orange Velodrome. / USA TODAY Sports

It’s Day 14 of the Olympics. Just one more Friday and then the final two days fall over the weekend. There are tons of medals still left to be handed out, and once again I’m back with my daily watch guide to help you determine where to set your eyes.

It’s also a great time to subscribe to Sports Illustrated’s Daily Rings, my daily podcast where Dan Gartland and I recap every sport every day. Join now so you’ll be with us in time to put a bow on the entire Olympics next when they are over. 

Here’s what I’ll be watching Friday, August 9.

This is not a comprehensive list; visit Olympics.com for a full schedule. All events will stream live on Peacock. I’ll also be tweeting out a schedule of medal events, Team USA games and other favorites each day.

My Day 14 Olympics viewing guide! It's Friday, and there are *A TON* of medals being handed out #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/igS6FFi0L5

— Mitch Goldich 🐙 (@mitchgoldich) August 8, 2024

Breaking

It has been much discussed over the past few years, but breaking will finally make its Olympic debut over the next two days. Yes, it’s breakdancing. Unlike gymnastics, they will have to freestyle with no control over what music is played.

You may be expecting young athletes, but the U.S. women’s team (they actually call them B-Girls) is led by 35-year-old Sunni Choi, who won a silver at the 2022 World Games.

A round robin starts at 10 a.m. ET, and the finals start shortly after 3 p.m. ET. The B-Boys will compete Saturday. It’s going to be interesting, and people are going to be talking about it, so you might as well check it out for yourself to see what all the fuss is about.

Soccer

Friday’s schedule has two big games with medals on the line. The women’s bronze game is between Spain and Germany at 9 a.m. ET. 

Then we’ll see the gold medal game to wrap up the men’s competition at noon ET. It’ll be the host country, France, against Spain. Spain won silver in Tokyo, but France has not won a medal in men’s soccer since taking gold back in 1984.

Beach volleyball

And finally, we have just two days left of beach volleyball. On Friday they’ll play the women’s bronze and gold medal matches, followed the next day by the men’s bronze and gold matches.

All four of Team USA’s pairs were knocked out before the medal rounds, but it’ll still be great to watch the conclusion of what has been a fun tournament in an iconic location right at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. 

Teams from Switzerland and Australia will battle for bronze at 3 p.m. ET, followed by the gold medal match between teams from Canada and Brazil at 4:30.

Sha'Carri Richardson runs in the women's 4x100 relay round 1 heats during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games. / Andrew Nelles-USA TODAY Sports

Lightning round

• It is yet another full day on the track, with a whopping eight medal events starting at 1:30 p.m. ET. They are, in this order: the men’s 400-meter hurdles, men’s triple jump, men’s 4x100 relay, women’s 400 meters, women’s 10,000 meters, women’s shot put, women’s heptathlon and women’s 4x100 relay.

• The U.S. women’s basketball team will put its 58-game Olympic winning streak on the line with a semifinal against Australia at 11:30 a.m. ET. The winner will take on the winner of France-Belgium, which tips at 3 p.m.

• The U.S. men’s water polo team has a semifinal against Serbia at 8:35 a.m. ET. While the U.S. women have medaled in six straight Olympics, the men haven’t medaled since winning a silver in Beijing in 2008.

• The U.S. men’s volleyball team will be in the bronze medal game against Italy. Both teams went 3–0 in group play before bowing out in the semifinals. The U.S. won bronze in Rio, but finished 10th in Tokyo, so this would be a nice rebound.

• The artistic swimming duet technical competition begins at 1:30 p.m. ET

• In weightlifting, 21-year-old American Olivia Reeves is favored to win a medal in her 71-kg weight class.

• And in wrestling, Team USA’s Spencer Lee will have a match for a gold medal, while Aaron Brooks and Helen Maroulis are both in matches for bronze. For Maroulis, it would be her third straight Olympic medal after taking gold in Rio and silver in Tokyo.