Canada women’s soccer team reaches Olympics QF despite points deduction from drone-spying scandal

Vanessa Gilles scored in the 62nd minute to give Canada a 1-0 victory over Colombia and send the team into the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics on Wednesday despite losing six points in the tournament because of a drone-spying scandal.

Canada will face Germany in a quarterfinals Saturday in Marseille.

Earlier in the day, the defending Olympic champions lost their bid to overturn the FIFA-ordered points deduction for filming an opponent’s practice in France.

Canada, which won its first two matches but earned no points from those victories, went into Wednesday’s match in Nice in need of a win to stand a chance of advancing.

“Going into the match we wanted to win regardless of what that ruling was,” Canada captain Jesse Fleming said. “It did not change our game plan or what we wanted to do.”

Canada had asked the Court of Arbitration for Sport to overturn the six-point penalty imposed by the sport’s world governing body for spying on New Zealand practices ahead of their opening game last week.

“Chances were stacked against us, but we pulled through, we stayed together through it all and we have seen results of that,” Gilles said after the victory.

In the group’s other match, Marie-Antoinette Katoto scored goals in the 22nd and 49th minutes for France to down New Zealand 2-1 in Lyon. Kate Taylor scored in the 42nd minute for the Ferns.

US tops group

Trinity Rodman and Korbin Albert both scored and the United States remained undefeated at the Olympics with a 2-1 victory over Australia on Wednesday to conclude the group stage.

The Americans, who already qualified for the quarterfinals, will play Japan on Saturday at Parc des Princes in Paris.

Canada, despite losing points as punishment for a drone spying scandal, advanced to play Germany in Marseille. Brazil was set to play France in Nantes and Spain faces Colombia in Lyon.

The United States is the winningest team at the Olympics, with four gold medals in women’s soccer. They’re playing under new coach Emma Hayes, who is tasked with turning the team around after a disappointing Women’s World Cup.

So far the team is off to a good start. The front trio of Rodman, Sophia Smith, and Mallory Swanson have scored seven of the team’s nine goals in France.

“The team is feeling good, we’ve had three great performances,” Crystal Dunn said. “Obviously there’s always things that we look at where we’re like, ‘Alright, this could be better.’ But overall I’m proud of the group. I think we really came together.”

Dunn had a well-struck attempt from distance in the 38th minute but Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold pushed it up and over. Moments later, Arnold stopped Lindsey Horan’s header from close range.

Rodman broke through in the 43rd minute when she poked in the ball in a scramble in front of the net. Video review stretched on for several minutes — apparently because of a technical issue — and Australia coach Tony Gustavsson was given a yellow card in the confusion.

Albert, who was subbed into the game during the second half, added a goal in the 77th.

“I was trying and hoping for a goal,” Albert said. “I’ve been working at it in practice and mentally, just trying to focus on it. And then it just happened. I actually closed my eyes and then I opened them and I was like, ‘Oh my God it went in.’”

U.S. midfielder Sam Coffey got a second yellow card in the fourth minute, meaning she won’t be available against Japan.

The Matildas peppered U.S. goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher in a scramble as time wound down and Alanna Kennedy helped Australia avoid the shutout with a goal a minute into stoppage time.

The Americans’ game against Australia was a rematch of the bronze medal match at the Tokyo Games. The United States won 4-3 on goals from Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe, who have both since retired.

Hayes said she worked through the possible things that could derail them in France — like looking ahead to the move to Paris for the quarterfinal.

“Today played out how I thought it would,” Hayes said. “I said to the girls before the game ‘This is a banana skin game.’ They said ‘What’s that?’ They said ‘it’s called a trap in America.’”

Germany advanced in second place behind the U.S. by routing Zambia 4-1 in Saint-Etienne.

Lea Schueller scored two goals — the first in the 10th and the second just past the hour mark.

Klara Buehl had given Germany a 2-0 lead in the 47th — shooting low into the bottom corner from outside the box.

Barbra Banda struck her fourth goal of the tournament two minutes later to give Zambia hope of salvaging something, but Schueller’s second extended Germany’s lead again.

A brilliant volley by substitute Elisa Senss in the seventh minute of stoppage time completed the win.

Undefeated Spain

Athenea del Castillo and Alexia Putellas both scored and Spain defeated Brazil 2-0 in an Olympic group finale that was spoiled for the Brazilians when captain Marta was sent off with red card late in the first half.

Marta, a six-time world player of the year playing in her sixth Olympics, was sent off the field in tears after a tackle on Spain’s Olga Carmona in first-half stoppage time.

The 38-year-old Brazilian has said that this will be her last major tournament with the national team. Marta has never won an Olympic or Women’s World Cup title with Brazil. The team came close twice, winning silver medals in both 2004 and 2008.

Marta won’t be able to play in Brazil’s quarterfinal match because of the card, but if Brazil can defeat France, she could play in the semfinals.

Spain, making its Olympic debut in France, was vying to be the first team to win a gold medal after winning a Women’s World Cup. Del Castillo scored in the 68th minute to put Spain in front and Putellas added a goal late in stoppage time.

La Roja finished atop the group. Japan finished second with a 3-1 victory over Nigeria.

Maika Hamano, Mina Tanaka and Hikaru Kitagawa all scored for Japan in the first half. Jennifer Echegini scored for Nigeria in the 42nd minute.

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AP Soccer Writer James Robson and Barbara Surk in Nice contributed to this report.

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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games