For these Games, the women competed in an 8-team tournament, which is a drop from 10 at the 2007 games. The defending champions are Brazil, who won the title on home field.
Teams
Qualification
A National Olympic Committee may enter one women's team for the football competition. Mexico, the host nation and Canada (automatic qualification) along with six other countries qualified through regional competitions.
The women's tournament is a full international tournament with no restrictions on age. Each nation must submit a squad of 18 players September 2011. A minimum of two goalkeepers (plus one optional alternate goalkeeper) must be included in the squad.
Eight teams are split into 2 preliminary round groups of 4 teams each. The top 2 teams from each group qualify for the knockout stage.
The third and fourth placed teams are eliminated from the competition.
In the semifinals, the matchups are as follows: A1 vs. B2 and B1 vs. A2
The winning teams from the semifinals play for the gold medal. The losing teams compete for the bronze medal.
Draw
The draw for the tournament was held at the offices of CONCACAF in New York City, United States. The draw was conducted by CONCACAF Deputy General Secretary Ted Howard. The seeding information was not provided, rather the results of the draw were given.[3]