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For a relatively simple sport, soccer is filled with novelties.
Outfield players don the gloves and go into goal when there’s no other option, penalty takers attempt chipped ‘Panenka’ spot kicks to varying degrees of success, goalkeepers sprint the length of the pitch to come up for last-minute corners — and sometimes they even score. And, every now and then, players will score directly from a corner kick.
Highly improbable, sometimes intentional, a goal scored in this way is known as a Gol Olimpico, an Olympic goal.
But how did these goals get their name? The history of the Olimpico is irrevocably intertwined with South American football, and with one of its great rivalries: Uruguay vs. Argentina.
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On June 9, 1924, Uruguay won the Olympic gold medal in Paris after defeating Switzerland 3-0. Around the same time in June 1924, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) changed the laws around corner kicks, making goals scored directly from the corner legal. But it wasn’t until Oct. 2, 1924 that these two pieces of information would combine to create the Olimpico moniker.
Following Uruguay’s Olympic victory, they played a two-game friendly series with their South American neighbors, Argentina. The teams played out a 1-1 draw in Montevideo in late-September before travelling to Buenos Aires.
The return match was suspended after four minutes due to the large crowd on the sideline and was rescheduled for Oct. 2. Argentina would eventually win the rematch 2-1 but the whole game was filled with controversy. La Celeste withdrew from the match with four minutes remaining and both sides accused the other of excessive aggression.
But the important part of this story happened in the 15th minute, when Argentina’s Cesareo Onzari whipped in a corner and scored.
The audacity of the goal and La Albiceleste defeating the Olympic champions was the catalyst for local journalists to dub the goal an Olympic one. From then on, whenever other goals were scored in this fashion, they were described as like the one scored against the Olympians and soon the label Gol Olimpico was applied to all such goals.
The Olimpico is stunning when it’s intentional and sometimes comical when it’s not. It really has no right to work considering where players are standing on the field, how much of the target they can see from that position, and what they need to do to the ball to make it curve into the back of the net. Whether they dribble through at the near post or sail past everyone into the far corner, there’s beauty in the curl of ball, the audacity, the incredulity. It’s glorious.
From regular-season matches, to finals, the Olympics, and even the World Cup, here are some of the very best Olimpicos.
Marcos Coll, Colombia vs. USSR | 1962 World Cup
The most impressive part of the first Olimpico to be scored at a World Cup is who Coll beat in the USSR goal: the legendary Lev Yashin.
Megan Rapinoe, United States vs. Canada | 2012 London Olympics
When it comes to scoring an Olimpico at the Olympics, only one player in soccer history has managed the feat: USWNT icon Rapinoe.
Elise Kellond-Knight, Australia vs. Norway | 2019 Women’s World Cup
The Matildas may have got knocked out of the 2019 Women’s World Cup on penalties, but they’ll always have Kellond-Knight’s amazing Olimpico at the Allianz Riviera in Nice.
Leandro Carvalho, Ceará vs. Corinthians | 2019-20 Brazilian Serie A
Vai bater no @MuseeLouvre, este vídeo. Oui?
📽️ Premiere#CearáTimedoPovo pic.twitter.com/Jqq2ivy7m0— Ceará Sporting Club (@CearaSC) September 7, 2019
Carvalho’s Olimpico was cunning and spectacular, catching the defence sleeping and using the outside of his foot. What’s more, it was scored in the 92nd minute to level the scores at 2-2 against São Paulo giants Corinthians.
Megan Rapinoe, United States vs. Australia | 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Remember when we said that Rapinoe was the only player in soccer history to score an Olimpico at the Olympic Games? Well she’s did it twice, repeating her 2012 stunner over eight years later in Tokyo.
Hakan Çalhanoglu, Internazionale vs. AS Roma | 2020-21 Serie A
1️⃣ | CALHA @hakanc10
⛳⛳#ForzaInter #RomaInter pic.twitter.com/TscYbCUxOS— Inter ⭐⭐ (@Inter_en) December 5, 2021
Why is Çalhanoglu’s goal against AS Roma — in Rome — so memorable? It’s an Olimpico at the Stadio Olimpico of course! How good.
Kyra Cooney-Cross, Melbourne Victory vs. Sydney FC | 2020-21 A-League Women
Kyra Cooney-Cross turns 22 today, which is all the excuse we need to bring out her Grand Final-winning Olimpico 🏆🚀🔥
Imagine doing this on the biggest stage at 19 🤯 What a talent.
Happy birthday, Kyra 🙌 pic.twitter.com/LCJ8Gdnh9A
— Ninja A-League (@aleaguewomen) February 15, 2024
In the 120th minute of the A-League Women Grand Final, 19-year-old Cooney-Cross stepped up to take a corner … and wrote her name into Australian football folklore.
Katie Zelem, Manchester United vs. Leicester City | 2021-22 Women’s Super League
Scoring one Olimpico is hard enough, but Zelem managed to do it twice in one game. What’s more, Zelem scored an Olimpico in the match before this one too.
Katie McCabe, Republic of Ireland vs. Canada | 2023 Women’s World Cup
In their first appearance at a Women’s World Cup, captain McCabe made sure Ireland fans would never forget the tournament with this inspirational strike.
Christian Pulisic, AC Milan vs. Club Brugge | 2024-25 UEFA Champions League
😱 CHRISTIAN PULISIC, YOU’RE CRAZY! 😱 What an incredible OLYMPIC GOAL by “Captain America” 🇺🇸 in the Champions League with AC Milan 🔥
Via: @CBSSportsGolazo #beINSPORTS #ChristianPulisic #Pulisic #ChampionsLeague #UCL #SerieA #USMNT
— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) October 22, 2024
USMNT star Pulisic called it “a bit of luck” at the time, but there’s no doubting the quality of his strike for AC Milan in their 3-1 win over Club Brugge in last season’s Champions League league phase.
Son Heung-Min, Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester United | 2024-25 Carabao Cup
No Olimpico list would be complete without Son’s stunner that sent Manchester United packing in the 2024-25 Carabao Cup quarterfinals. The South Korea skipper’s crazy 88th-minute strike was the perfect denouement of a topsy-turvy match that finished 4-3 after Spurs had been leading 3-0.
Ángel Di María, Rosario Central vs. Boca Juniors | 2025 Liga Profesional de Fútbol
¡¡¡GOLAZO OLÍMPICO DE FIDEO DI MARÍA PARA EL 1-1 DE ROSARIO CENTRAL ANTE BOCA!!! pic.twitter.com/DDWGnuSt9W
— SportsCenter (@SC_ESPN) September 14, 2025
Last, but certainly not least, is this beauty from Di María for Rosario Central in their 1-1 draw with Boca Juniors in September. The Argentina star has a habit of scoring from corners, with this one — astonishingly — his fourth Olimpico.