While the European Championships and Copa America are now on hiatus for another four years, a spectacular summer of football continues with the imminent men's and women's Paris 2024 Olympics competitions. From July 24 to August 10, 16 men's teams and 16 women's teams will be gunning for gold in the French capital, where Brazil are the reigning champions in the male event, while Canada triumphed in the women's competition at Tokyo 2020. The latter nation are set to defend their gold medal in Paris, but there will be a new set of Olympic kings crowned next month, as Brazil failed to qualify for the 2024 Games.
For all 16 men's teams, managers can only select three players over the age of 23, but the women's competition is not burdened by such restrictions, and here, Sports Mole picks out the best male and female footballers competing at this year's Olympics. © Reuters The oldest male footballer taking part in the Paris Games at 36 years of age, Nicolas Otamendi sports the captain's armband for Argentina on the back of helping the reigning Copa America champions defend their continental crown this summer. Otamendi started just one of La Albiceleste's matches en route to Copa glory, though, as Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martinez have ousted the ageing former Manchester City man from the Argentina XI, but he is still going strong for Portuguese giants Benfica.
Also a World Cup winner with his nation in 2022, Otamendi has won 117 caps for his nation and will be making his Olympi.
