The dream of la tercera is over. The Argentine men’s Olympic football team lost 1-0 against France in the quarter finals of Paris 2024, meaning the Albiceleste will have to wait another four years for its third Olympic gold medal.

The game was set to be a high-tension affair, following Argentina’s win against France in the 2022 Qatar final. More recently, the French Football Federation sued its Argentine counterpart after videos emerged of the team singing racist chants about French players during the celebrations after winning the 2024 Copa América. 

French fans at the Matmut Atlantique stadium in Bordeaux made their feelings clear, booing the Argentine players throughout the game, as well as the national anthem when it was played before the match.

The Albiceleste started the game looking nervous and unable to control the ball. France took the upper hand early on and it was just four minutes in that winger Michel Olise found striker Jean-Philippe Mateta for a clean header and the 1-0.

With the lead, France dropped deeper and Argentina started to see more of the ball, but inaccuracy in the final third denied them opportunities to score. The Albiceleste’s biggest chance came in the 35th minute: after an excellent play by midfielder Ezequiel Fernández, his Boca teammate Cristian Medina launched a cross while on ground, which striker Giuliano Simeone missed from a point blank header.

In the second half, France withdrew even deeper, allowing Argentina plenty of time on the ball. However, controlling the tempo and the ground didn’t afford the Albiceleste many advantages.

It looked like the final blow had come in the 83rd minute, when a scrappy play allowed Olise an open shot, which deflected off an Albiceleste defender for the 2-0, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul against Fernández. Argentina kept pushing, but lack of precision in front of goal cost them.

Tensions flared in the end, when a fight broke out between players from the opposing sides  and then simmered over into the dressing rooms before fizzling out.

French player Enzo Millot was sent off after the game for his part in the brawl. “I apologize for the disturbance at the end,” French coach Thierry Henry told TyC Sport. “It’s not what I wanted and I couldn’t control it.”