2024 Paris Olympics Soccer Odds & Picks: Thursday (7/25)

The ladies take center stage on Thursday as the women's soccer tournament gets underway. 12 nations will compete in a three-group, round-robin style event. The top-two teams from each group will advance to a knockout stage, as well as the best two third-place teams. Unlike the men's side, there is no age restriction for the tournament.

Below I'll dive into three of my favorite bets for Thursday's opening matchday from France.

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2024 Paris Olympics Soccer Best Bets (Thursday)

(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)

Spain (-175) vs. Japan (+450), DRAW (+340) | 2.5 (-155/+120)

The action gets started with a Group C tilt between Spain and Japan. Spain (+200) trails only the United States (+175) in terms of odds to win the gold medal, while Japan (+750) comes in with the fourth-shortest odds. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. ET from La Beaujoire-Louis-Fonteneau in Nantes, France.

Spain is the top-ranked team in the women's soccer world. However, they didn't receive an easy draw in their opener, as they'll take on a Japanese side that sits in seventh place in the FIFA rankings. Japan is an unbeaten 3-2-0 in their last five matches, and they haven't suffered a multi-goal loss in over a calendar year! I'll back Japan getting a full goal.

Furthermore, these two teams played in last year's Women's World Cup and Japan won 4-0. The goals came from three different players (Tanaka, Ueki, Miyazawa x2), and all three ladies remain on the roster for the olympic squad. This should be a fantastic matchup on Thursday morning, but I simply can't pass up on a full goal with Japan in this spot.

Bet: Japan +1.0 (-125)

Germany (-135) vs. Australia (+360), DRAW (+290) | 2.5 (-135/+110)

One of the midday matches on the six-game slate pits Germany against Australia in a Group B showdown. Germany won the gold medal in Brazil in 2016, while Australia's best performance was a fourth-place finish in Japan in 2020. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET from Orange Vélodrome in Marseille, France.

Between last year's World Cup to the Nations League and Euro 2025 qualifiers, Germany has been playing a ton of meaningful soccer over the last 12 months. They've been excelling as well, going 6-0-1 in their last seven matches. It has been the offense that's impressed, averaging 2.7 goals per match over the seven-game stretch.

Meanwhile, Australia has played three friendlies against Canada (8th in FIFA rankings) over the last eight months, and they're 0-0-3 against them. This should be a similar step up in competition, and I can't see the Tillies hanging around in this one. Let's ride with the German women's team on Thursday.

Bet: Germany Moneyline (-135)

United States of America (-1800) vs. Zambia (+3500), DRAW (+1300) | 3.5 (-150/+115)

The other Group B contest on the schedule sees the tournament favorites, USA (+175), take on Zambia. Kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m. ET from Allianz Riviera in Nice, France.

This is a pretty big mismatch in terms of talent and historical success. I think there's a chance the USA wins massively in this game, but rather than lay 3+ goals, I'm going to take the over. That way, in case Zambia manages to score, it won't ruin our spread bet. Let's take the over 3.5 goals.

Zambia's offense has produced over the last year, scoring at least one goal in their last 11 contests. They're actually averaging 2.7 goals per match over the 7-2-2 run across all competitions. This will surely be a step up in competition, but we should be looking good if the African country can find the back of the net. As for the USA, they're 5-2-1 in their last seven competitive matches, averaging 2.7 goals per match during the span. I'm expecting plenty of offensive success against FIFA's 64th-ranked Zambia team. Let's take the over.

Bet: Over 3.5 (-150)

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