Men's Olympic soccer: Key Americans to watch as the USMNT begins its medal challenge

The Olympics opening ceremony kicks off on Friday, July 26, but the Games themselves kick off on Wednesday, July 24, with the first round of the Olympic men's soccer tournament.

Sixteen nations — including the United States — will compete for the three medal spots.

The tournament structure is identical to the Copa America that wrapped up earlier this month. It begins with four groups of four teams each; every team will play its group members once, and the top two teams in each group will advance to the knockout rounds. The United States is seeded into a group with France, Guinea and New Zealand.

The teams, though, will look very different from what viewers have come to expect. The Olympic men's soccer tournament is officially a "youth" tournament, which means that teams are largely restricted to players under the age of 23. Each team may bring a maximum of three "senior" players, but many, including the United States, are bringing fewer.

For fans of the U.S. Men's National Team, that means no Matt Turner in goal, no Tim Ream in defense, no Tyler Adams in midfield and no Christian Pulisic up top. The team will be completely different from the one that partook in Copa America. Here are the players to keep an eye on as the squad prepares for its medal charge.

Walker Zimmerman: Forget three senior players; Olympic USMNT coach Marko Mitrovic brought just one. Zimmerman, the 31-year-old Nashville SC defender, will be the only experienced player on the U.S. Olympic soccer roster. Zimmerman was a starting center-back for the USMNT at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and has been one of Nashville's most important players since joining the club in 2022.

Aidan Morris: MLS fans will know Morris well; he was a key part of the Columbus Crew's championship-winning team in 2023 and just signed a big contract with English club Middlesbrough. He'll leverage these Olympics as a showcase for his metronomic passing in the center of the park. With fellow American midfielders like Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie struggling for fitness in recent years, Morris could develop into a big-name USMNT starter in the run-up to the 2026 World Cup.

Benjamin Cremaschi: Most people know Inter Miami for its big-name stars like Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, but the team is much more than that. It's blossomed into one of the deepest, strongest outfits in MLS history. Cremaschi, a 19-year-old Argentinian-American attacking midfielder, is a big part of that. He's developed rapidly under coach Tata Martino and looks like a Christian Pulisic-style star in the making. If he plays as well at the Olympics as he does for Miami, Cremaschi may leave France as one of the tournament's buzziest stars.

The USMNT will kick off its Olympic journey against host nation France on Wednesday, July 24 at 3:00 p.m. ET.