Mali ready for Israel in Olympics football showdown

Mali will play their first match against Israel in the Paris 2024 Olympics on Wednesday, July 24th – kick off at 6:00 PM CAT.

The match will be at Parc des Princes in Paris, France. Mali had a 2-1 victory over Uzbekistan in a friendly match on June 10th. They haven’t lost in their last four matches, winning three and drawing one.

“As coach, my objective is to do better than our quarter-final finish at Athens 2004,” Badra Diallo told FIFA. The well-travelled Malian is sure to have lofty ambitions for his troops when the action gets underway in France, not least because the Olympic movement holds a special place in his heart.

Keep an eye on midfielder Boubacar Traoré, who plays for Wolverhampton Wanderers in the English Premier League.

Israel lost 2-0 to Germany in the 2025 UEFA Under 21 Euro qualifiers in March 2024 and hasn’t played since. They have lost their last six matches. Oscar Gloukh, an attacking midfielder for RB Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga, is a key player for Israel.

This will be the first time Mali and Israel meet at the under-23 level. The match will be officiated by referee Campbell-Kirk Kawana-Waugh from New Zealand.

Olympics history – Previous participations: 1 (Athens 2004) – Best result: Quarter-finals (Athens 2004)

Mali headed to Athens in 2004, eager to emulate the exploits of African heavyweights Nigeria and Cameroon, who had reigned supreme in the previous two editions of the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament.

Les Aigles Espoirs got their campaign up and running with a scoreless stalemate against Mexico before making their mark against the hosts with a 2-0 win. Well placed to advance to the next round, the tournament first-timers shared the spoils with the Korea Republic in a thrilling tussle that ended 3-3, a result that was enough to see them progress as group winners.

The West Africans then took Italy to extra time in the quarter-finals following a goalless draw after normal time, only for Cesare Bovo’s 116th-minute header to crush Malian dreams of an Olympic medal.