United States drawn into Olympic group G

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic draw took place at extremely early o’clock this morning; we now know the groups for the tournament this summer. The United States was drawn into group G, and will be facing Sweden, Australia, and New Zealand. Here’s the full draw:

Group E
Japan, Canada, Great Britain, Chile

Group F
China PR, Brazil, Zambia, Netherlands

Group G
Sweden, USA, Australia, New Zealand

In terms of venues and travel, this means the US will kick off in Tokyo, then go to Saitama, then Kashima - an extremely easy travel menu, particularly in comparison to Canada and the Brits, who will be hauling themselves from Hokkaido in the north all the way down to the Tokyo area.

July 21
USA vs Sweden
Tokyo Stadium, Tokyo

July 24
USA vs New Zealand
Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama

July 27
USA vs Australia
Kashima Stadium, Kashima

Out of the opponents the US must face to escape group, probably the most worrisome is Sweden, who just forced them to the brink in a 1-1 tie in a friendly. Australia might have been more of a ! reaction two years ago, but they’ve recently been having big problems of their own as they adjust to new coach Tony Gustavsson, having been handed 10 aggregate away goals in two European friendlies of their own, courtesy Germany and the Netherlands. New Zealand have traditionally been a spirited team to play, but the pandemic hit them hard, and the Football Ferns haven’t assembled as a team in quite some time, making it likely they’ll be dealing with major rust issues even by mid-July.

How do you feel about this group draw and our chances of advancing? Let us know in the comments!