Brazil has never won an Olympic gold medal in soccer. They’re trying to correct that on home soil at Rio 2016, and they’re very much expected to. Neymar and co. kick off their quest for gold on Thursday, against South Africa.
Brazil vs. South Africa 2016 live stream: Time, TV schedule and how to watch Olympic soccer online
Neymar is expected to deliver big.
Koji Watanabe/Getty Images
The match is scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m. ET, and it’ll be on TV on NBCSN in the United States. If you want to watch online, the game is streaming on NBC Sports Live Extra.
Neymar was on the team that captured a silver medal in London four years ago. Brazil was a big favorite going into the final, but was upset by Mexico. Wanting to ensure that doesn't happen again, Brazil held Neymar out of this summer's Copa América so he could focus on staying fit for this tournament.
South Africa don't have a lot of recognizable names -- only two of their players ply their trade outside of their native country. They also didn't even beat the team they got past to qualify for the games, losing to Senegal in the group stage of the Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations, then getting past them on penalties in the third-place game. They're the least experienced and accomplished of the teams in Group A, and will be slight underdogs against Denmark and Iraq as well. If they avoid defeat in their opener, it would be one of the all-time great Olympic soccer upsets.
Match date/time: Thursday, Aug.4, 3 p.m. ET
Venue: Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha, Brasilia, Brazil
TV: NBCSN (U.S.), SporTV, Globo (Brazil)
Online: NBC Sports Live Extra (U.S.)
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