Draw made for London 2012 Olympic Games football tournament

Wednesday, 25th April 2012 at 08:17am

WEMBLEY, LONDON: The draw for the London 2012 Olympic Games football tournament was made yesterday with hosts Great Britain's men's and women's teams handed tricky draws.

Stuart Pearce's side will face Senegal, the United Arab Emirates and Uruguay, while Hope Powell's team will line up against New Zealand in the opening match of the tournament before meeting Cameroon and South American heavyweight's Brazil.

"Uruguay will be tough but I wouldn't dismiss anyone," said Pearce after the draw.

"The addition of three over-age players can contribute to a really strong side. It will be tough, tournament football always is. Everyone in the squad will have star quality but I'll pick the squad on merit.

"The squad may not reflect every home nation and celebrity, but they will be the best 18 players who have the best opportunity to deliver a gold. That's my only criteria."

Reigning champions Argentina failed to qualify for the tournament which will get underway on July 25.

Brazil's men have been drawn in Group C alongside Egypt, Belarus and New Zealand, while World and European champions Spain face Japan, Honduras and Morrocco.

Each team in the men's draw will select a squad of 18 players of which 15 must be born after January 1 1989.

Matches will be played at a number of locations around Great Britain with games scheduled to take place at Hampden Park in Scotland, St James' Park, Newcastle; Old Trafford, Manchester; the City of Coventry Stadium, Coventry; the Millennium Stadium, Wales and Wembley.

In the men's draw the 16 teams have been split into four groups of four where each team will play three matches. The top two teams will then go through to the quarter finals.

In the women's tournament, the 12 teams have been split into three groups of four where the top two in each group plus the two best ranked third-placed teams will move through to the quarter finals.

Men's draw:

Group A: Great Britain, Senegal, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay

Group B: Mexico, South Korea, Gabon, Switzerland

Group C: Brazil, Egypt, Belarus, New Zealand

Group D: Spain, Japan, Honduras, Morocco

Women's draw:

Group E: Great Britain, New Zealand, Cameroon, Brazil

Group F: Japan, Canada, Sweden, South Africa

Group G: USA, France, Colombia, Korea DPR

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