Must Win for USA Against New Zealand
New Zealand vs USA Olympic Soccer: USA Favored Despite 3-0 Loss

New Zealand Coming Off Winning Start
Coming off just their second win in Olympic history, New Zealand take on the USA on Saturday. While the USA fell to tournament favorites France in their Group A opener on Wednesday, they certainly looked dangerous at times. Now, this is a must win for the USA as they look to get out of their group for the first time since 2000.
With just two days of rest in between games, the Olympics are one of the most challenging tournaments from a physical standpoint. In a key Group A match, we’ll look over the New Zealand vs USA Olympic soccer odds.
New Zealand U23 vs USA U23
Day/Time:
Location: Stade Velodrome, Nice, France
New Zealand U23 vs USA U23 Head-to-Head:
This is the first-ever men’s New Zealand vs USA Olympic soccer match. In fact, this is the first meeting between the U23 sides, in all competitions. New Zealand did lose 3-2 to CONCACAF side Honduras in the last Olympics, though.
Resilient New Zealand Take Down Guinea
After a VAR check, New Zealand U23 won a penalty in the first half of their Olympic opening match against Guinea. New Zealand captain Matthew Garbett stepped up but sent his spot kick wide. Not putting his head down after a golden opportunity, Garbett managed to score from open play just a few minutes later.
Guinea then went on the front foot and finally managed to find a breakthrough in the 72nd minute. It didn’t take long for New Zealand to find a winner, as Lachlan Bayliss set up Ben Waine in the 7th minute. The 2-1 victory was New Zealand’s second in their Olympic history.
While the Olympic sports betting odds price them as +8000 longshots to win the tournament, New Zealand did reach the Quarter-Finals at Tokyo 2020. With 35-year old defender Michael Boxall as one of their overage players, New Zealand have a steadying presence at the back.
After grabbing three points on Wednesday, it’ll almost certainly only take one win from their last two games to reach the quarters once again.
USA Fall Apart in Second Half
The USA looked bright at times against France on Wednesday. It took a Guillaume Restes kick save to keep out a first half Paxten Aaronson shot and Djordje Mihailovic hit the crossbar with the score level in the 59th minute.
However, USA’s defense gave too much space to France striker Alexandre Lacazette and he made them pay. John Tolkin had a brilliant opportunity to equalize for the USA on a header but couldn’t convert. Then, France got two more goals in a 3-0 victory that doesn’t tell the full story of the match.
There’s no more room for error for the USA now. The USMNT players know they need to win their next two matches, against New Zealand and Guinea, to ensure they go through. On the wings, Kevin Paredes and Aaronson are capable of causing problems and coach Marko Mitrovic needs more from Duncan McGuire up top.
The spine of USA’s team is quite solid, with overage players Miles Robinson and Walker Zimmerman in defense. Venezia duo Tanner Tessman and Gianluca Busio give the USA balance in midfield.
Match Analysis & Odds
The 2024 Olympic dates show that the USA take on Guinea on June 30th and New Zealand face France on the same day. New Zealand will be heavy underdogs against France and they’ll go all out to get points here against the USA.
Currently, the New Zealand vs USA Olympic soccer odds price the Kiwis as +400 underdogs. A draw is at +260 and USA come in at -167 odds to get their first Olympic win since 2008. If USA are able to win here, the final matchday would decide which two teams go through to the Quarter-Finals.
Under 2.5, 3 goals sit at -130 odds but we expect USA will have plenty of chances to score in this one. New Zealand conceded 17 shots to Guinea on Wednesday and they’ll be up against it here. While USA -0.5, 1 shows even odds, New Zealand +0.5, +1 displays -118. Both teams to score is at -133 in what’s expected to be an exciting match.
For Olympic betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.