Flamengo vs Olympiacos: Under-20 Intercontinental Cup 2024 preview: Where to watch, kick-off time, key players

Flamengo play Olympiacos at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday 24 August in the Under-20 Intercontinental Cup 2024.

Where to watch Flamengo vs Olympiacos on TV and streaming

The Under-20 Intercontinental Cup match will also be available in the following territories via UEFA and CONMEBOL's broadcast partners:

Czechia: AMC Networks (Sport 1)
Greece: COSMOTE TV, Alter Ego
Georgia: Silknet
Hungary: Sport 1
Spain: Ziggo Sport, Telefónica
United Kingdom: TNT Sports

Brazil: Globo, Fla TV
Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela; Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama; Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Marten, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands: ESPN

The match will be streamed live on UEFA.tv in: 

Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Kingdom

What do you need to know?

One of a number of events launched as part of UEFA's co-operation with CONMEBOL, this is the third U-20 Intercontinental Cup. The first in 2022 was won by UEFA Youth League holders Benfica against Peñarol at Estadio Centenario, Montevideo while last year victory went to 2023 Copa Libertadores Sub-20 champions Boca Juniors, edging AZ Alkmaar on penalties at La Bombonera in Buenos Aires.

This year Flamengo came from behind to beat Boca Juniors in Maldonado, Uruguay in March to claim their first Copa Libertadores Sub-20 title, the only team in that tournament's eight editions to win all their games within 90 minutes. That ensured this annual intercontinental challenge match would come to Brazil and yet another celebrated stadium, besides giving Flamengo the chance to emulate their senior European-South American Cup triumph of 1981, when with Zico in top form they beat Liverpool 3-0 in Tokyo.

Among those who shone for Flamengo in lifting the South American crown was Lorran, who in January 2023 became their youngest-ever senior scorer aged 16 years 205 days. The creative playmaker, with the weight of wearing Zico's No10 shirt, made the equaliser in the final and got a beautiful winner himself just before half-time. However, although he is in the Flamengo squad for Saturday's game, Lorran travelled with the senior team to La Paz for Thursday's Libertadores game with Bolivar as an unused substitute.

Left-back Iago Teodoro was another Libertadores Sub-20 star, not just for his defending but also for his goals, particularly from set pieces aided by his 1.90m frame. He finished as competition joint-top scorer with club-mate Wallace Yan on four, including both in the 2-1 semi-final defeat of Rosario Central – Flamengo coming from behind as they would in the final – the first a penalty and the second a flicked header from a corner.

Wallace Yan struck in all three group games in Uruguay while Nigerian winger Shola Ogundana, who hit the equaliser in the final, signed a permanent Flamengo deal this month having previously been on loan. Lucyan and Rayan Lucas also combine well on the right while Matheus Gonçalves could also feature.

The latter did not figure in the Libertadores Sub-20 but made a debut in the senior version in April, though both he and Shola were rested for the fixture at Bolívar to which Lorran travelled. Former Brazilian international Filipe Luís is in charge of Flamengo after taking over from Mário Jorge.

While continental club titles were no novelty for Flamengo or Brazil, Olympiacos winning the UEFA Youth League in April gave Greece their first-ever such European trophy, emulated a few weeks later by the seniors in the UEFA Europa Conference League. Having come through the domestic champions path and then knocked out both Inter and Lens on penalties, Olympiacos were superb in the 3-1 win at Bayern München that took them to the Nyon finals.

After defeating fellow shoot-out specialists Nantes in the semis, Olympiacos beat AC Milan 3-0 to take the title, Christos Mouzakitis's penalty followed by two superb strikes from Antonios Papakanellos and Theofanis Bakoulas, all in seven-minute spell just past the hour.

UEFA's analysis unit pointed to how Olympiacos used both their width, especially left wing-back Nektarios Alafakis linking with Stavros Pnevmonidis, and energetic pressing to get the better of Milan, Bakoulas and Mouzakitis running the midfield. Mouzakitis got six goals through the campaign, one off finishing overall competition top scorer. Goalkeeper Antzelo Sina also played a crucial role but is now on loan at Portugal's Rio Ave along with right-back Konstantinos Kostoulas, while midfielder Thanasis Koutsogoulas is similarly at Panserraikos, the only three starters from the Nyon final not travelling to Brazil.

Sotirios Sylaidopoulos, who coached Olympiacos to victory in Nyon before moving over full time to assist senior boss José Luis Mendilibar, will be in charge of the squad in Rio de Janeiro and can deploy the likes of Bakoulas, Mouzakitis, Papakanellos, defender Isidoros Koutsidis and forward Charalambos Kostoulas, who have made the senior step up themselves in pre-season.

View from the camps

Sotiris Silaidopoulos, Olympiacos coach: "They're a very strong side, a very, very good team who have a great deal of individual talent at their disposal and speed in the attacking third, and I'm sure that it is going to be a very difficult game.

"Our goal is to go in with the best and strongest possible team so that, firstly, we can give the lads the chance to play in such an important game, which will help them develop and grow from these experiences and, secondly, to be able to compete in the best possible way for a trophy that is very important for the club but for Greece as well."

Isidoros Koutsidis, Olympiacos defender: "This is a great feeling and the Maracanã is famous worldwide. What makes this experience especially unique is playing in front of so many people, who at the same time are football fans who share a different football culture."

 Filipe Luís, Flamengo coach: "Olympiacos are a team that play very aggressively and presses, in a 5-2-3 formation. They press hard and don’t want to break up that line of five, because they feel protected. It will be very difficult.

"They like to press, they don't mind being without the ball, and in possession they play a more direct game. We will have to be at our best to leave Maracanã as champions."

Can there be extra time?

This one-off fixture will be played over 90 minutes. There is no extra time, so if the tie is level at the end of regulation time then it goes straight to penalties. Each team is permitted to use five of their 12 substitutes.