Men's Olympics soccer begins

Gold-medal favourites Holland were held to a 1-1 draw against Nigeria at the Opening match of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lionel Messi scored to give defending champions Argentina a victory against the Ivory Coast while World Champions Italy beat Honduras 3-0. Host nation China got a dissapointing 1-1 draw with minnos New Zealand. Brazil were victorious against Belgium with a 1-0 win. Austrailia were held to a 1-1 draw with Serbia. Japan lost 1-0 to the USA and South Korea and Cameroon finished all square after 1-1 draw.