One of the top medal hopes for Argentina at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will be through the men’s football tournament.
The team, led by former Albiceleste and Barcelona star Javier Mascherano, will seek to repeat the gold-medal glory of Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.
Mascherano was part of both of those winning sides, while Lionel Messi tasted glory in 2008. There had been speculation that the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner would be part of the group for Paris, but given he is playing at the Copa America finals and is midway through his club season with Inter Miami, it comes as little surprise that Messi will not be at the Olympics this time.
Below is the squad selected by Mascherano for the football tournament, which begins in late July.
MORE: Lionel Messi’s all-time record at the Copa America
Argentina’s squad for the Paris Olympic Games comprises 18 players. Of these, 15 are in the Under-23 age category, while three senior players — with no upper age limit — are permitted. In addition, four reserve players are named, who will be on standby in case of an injury to a squad member.
Below is the roster selected by coach Javier Mascherano following a handful of withdrawals due to clubs’ refusal to send their players (Enzo Fernandez of Chelsea, Lucas Esquivel of Athletico Paranaense, Porto’s Alan Varela, Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez, and Valentin Barco of Brighton & Hove Albion were all denied call-ups).
| Player | Club | Position |
| Geronimo Rulli* | Ajax (NED) | Goalkeeper |
| Leandro Brey | Boca Juniors (ARG) | Goalkeeper |
| Marco Di Cesare | Racing Club (ARG) | Defender |
| Bruno Amione | Santos Laguna (MEX) | Defender |
| Nicolas Otamendi* | Benfica (POR) | Defender |
| Julio Soler | Lanus (ARG) | Defender |
| Joaquin Garcia | Velez (ARG) | Defender |
| Gonzalo Lujan | San Lorenzo (ARG) | Defender |
| Kevin Zenon | Boca Juniors (ARG) | Midfielder |
| Ezequiel Fernandez | Boca Juniors (ARG) | Midfielder |
| Cristian Medina | Boca Juniors (ARG) | Midfielder |
| Claudio Echeverri | River Plate (ARG) | Midfielder |
| Santiago Hezze | Olympiacos (GRE) | Midfielder |
| Thiago Almada | Botafogo (BRA) | Midfielder |
| Julian Alvarez* | Manchester City (ENG) | Forward |
| Luciano Gondou | Argentinos Juniors (ARG) | Forward |
| Lucas Beltran | Fiorentina (ITA) | Forward |
| Giuliano Simeone | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | Forward |
*Denotes over-age players
The four reserve players:
| Player | Club | Position |
| Fabrizio Iacovich | Estudiantes de la Plata (ARG) | Goalkeeper |
| Aaron Quiros | Banfield (ARG) | Defender |
| Juan Nardoni | Racing Club (ARG) | Midfielder |
| Federico Redondo | Inter Miami (USA) | Midfielder |
Argentina called up three overage players for their squad for the Paris Olympics. Selecting these senior stars posed a problem given that the tournament is held close to the end of the Copa America and at a time when club teams are getting preseason preparations underway.
After learning of their respective clubs’ willingness to release them for the tournament, Mascherano decided on Geronimo Rulli (Ajax), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica) and Julian Alvarez (Manchester City) as his three overage players. Along with Botafogo’s Thiago Almada, these are the members of Mascherano’s playing squad who were also part of the World Cup-winning roster in 2022.
There was speculation for some time about the possibility of Messi being at the Olympic Games, but that prospect was quickly ruled out. Angel Di Maria also turned down a possible call-up, while Emiliano Martinez had hoped to be involved but was not given permission by Aston Villa.
Alejandro Garnacho was another tipped to be part of the Olympics roster, and it was reported in Argentina last month that Manchester United had blocked his call-up to Mascherano’s squad. However, according to the Manchester Evening News, United were never asked by Argentina to release the winger for the Paris Games.
The football tournament at the 2024 Olympics begins on July 24 and concludes on August 10.
Argentina were drawn into Group B for the men’s football tournament at the Paris Games. They will face Morocco, Iraq, and Ukraine in that pool.
Times below are listed in local Paris time, CEST.
For ET (US/Canada) -6hrs, for BST (UK) -1hrs, for IST (India) +3:30 hrs, for AEST (Australia) +8hrs.
| Date | Match | Venue | Time (CEST, local) |
| Wed, July 24 | Argentina vs. Morocco | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard (Saint-Etienne) | 3:00 p.m. |
| Sat, July 27 | Argentina vs. Iraq | Groupama Stadium (Lyon) | 3:00 p.m. |
| Tues, July 30 | Argentina vs. Ukraine | Groupama Stadium (Lyon) | 5:00 p.m. |
