15 greatest upsets in Summer Olympic history
By Brad Weiss
15. 1924: Sweden Beats Belgium
Although they did not win the gold medal, the performance of the Sweden soccer team in the 1924 Paris Olympics is still considered one of the greatest upsets in the history of International soccer.
Heading into the Summer Games, the Belgium soccer team were poised to win another gold medal. Coming off a gold at the 1920 Summer Olympics held in their home country, the Belgium team came into their match-up with Sweden as a heavy favorite.
The second round match was played on May 29, 1924 in front of over 8,500 spectators. The Sweden team jumped out to an early lead, as Rudolf Koch scored eight minutes into the contest. The Swedes would not look back, crushing the Belgium team to a score of 8-1. The team got three goals a piece from both Koch and Sven Rydell. Henri Larnoe had the only goal for Belgium.
The Sweden team beat Egypt 5-0 in the quarterfinals, setting the stage for a semifinal match against Switzerland. The Swiss team would beat Sweden 2-1, forcing the Swedes to play for the Bronze medal against the Netherlands.
Sweden would go on to beat the Netherlands for the Bronze, while Switzerland advanced to go for the gold against Uruguay. Uruguay beat the Swiss team 3-0 to win the gold medal, but it was the Sweden team that had the lasting memory of the tournament.
Next: 14. 1900: Margaret Abbott wins the gold