Four countries from Group B will enter play on Wednesday at 2:30 a.m. MT with chances to advance to the Olympic Quarterfinal Round. Only two will make it to the next round.
Through the first two matches of the Group Stage, Honduras, South Korea, Romania and New Zealand are all knotted with three points, each team winning one and losing one. That sets the stage for an incredible final day of the Group Stage as Douglas Martinez and Honduras take on South Korea at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama while Romania meets New Zealand 700 miles away at Sapporo Dome. The first two rounds for Group B were played back-to-back at Kashima Stadium
South Korea sits in the driver’s seat in the group after posting an emphatic 4-0 win over Romania on Sunday. That will only come into play if South Korea and Honduras draw on Wednesday. If both games have winners, the two winners will advance. If one match has a draw, the winner from the other match will be joined by either South Korea or New Zealand. If both matches end in a draw, South Korea will advance and be joined by either Honduras or New Zealand, depending on which country scores more goals in the final Group Stage match. If they both score the same, Honduras will advance on the third tie-breaker (head-to-head matchup) after beating New Zealand on Sunday.
Honduras has played in the Olympics in five of the last six tournaments, advancing out of the Group Stage in each of the last two with a quarterfinal appearance in 2012 and a fourth-place finish in 2016. South Korea won bronze in 2012 and also reached the quarterfinals in 2004 and 2016. Romania is in the Olympics for the first time since 1964 in Japan – when it was the Socialist Republic of Romania – and is in the tournament for just the fourth time since first appearing in 1924. Finally, New Zealand has reached the tournament in three of the past four Olympics, but has not advanced out of the Group Stage.
It is sure to make for must-watch television for those brave enough to tune in at 2:30 a.m.
Group B Standings
South Korea (1-1-0, 3 points, +3 GD)
Honduras (1-1-0, 3 points, 0 GD)
New Zealand (1-0-0, 3 points, 0 GD)
Romania (1-0-0, 3 points, -3 GD)
The top two teams from each group advance to the Quarterfinal Round.
