Olympic Softball Tokyo 2020: How to Watch USA vs. Japan Gold Medal Match Live
Softball returned to the Olympic program in the Tokyo Games after a 13-year absence, but you could be forgiven for thinking it had never been away.
As it's been in the case since the sport made its Olympic debut in 1996, one between the USA and Japan will again win the gold medal.
The two softball powerhouses will meet in the gold medal match on Tuesday in Yokohama, Japan, the third time they have crossed path in the final at the Olympics after the USA won in Sydney in 2000 before Japan snapped American's domination eight years later in Beijing.
The pre-tournament favorites heading into the Games, both the USA and Japan have lived up to expectations, with the Americans progressing to the gold medal match with a perfect record, while Japan's only loss in five round robin games came against their gold medal match opponents on Monday.
Trailing 1-0, the USA leveled the score in the bottom of the sixth inning, before Kelsey Stewart homered in the bottom of the seventh to secure a 2-1 for the Americans.
Stewart's home run was Team USA's first of the Games, where the three-time Olympic champions have so far failed to catch fire offensively. Team USA has scored nine runs on 27 hits in five games and on Monday, failed to record a hit until the sixth inning.
Team USA coach Ken Eriksen, however, was unconcerned.
"Get 'em on, get 'em over and get 'em in. That's they way we've played and won games. Timely hitting," he told NBC Sports.
"I wish we could have 18 runs, but we're playing against great pitching."
Japan, on the other hand, has put up 18 runs with six homers over 26 hits and Monday was only the second time in five games the defending champions had failed to score more than one run.
With the exception of the 2004 Olympics in Athens, the gold medal match has never been decided by more than two runs and it could be a game of fine margins again on Tuesday.
Here's all you need to know.
When is USA vs. Japan?
The softball gold medal match is scheduled for Tuesday, July 27. Play begins at 8 p.m. local time (7 a.m. ET, 4 a.m. PT).
Where is USA vs. Japan?
The softball gold medal match will be played at the Yokohama Baseball Stadium, where the U.S.A. defeated Mexico 2-0 and Australia 2-1 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The venue also hosted USA's 2-1 win over Japan on Monday.
How to watch USA vs. Japan on TV and online
The softball gold medal match is broadcast by NBCSN on Tuesday, with a livestream available via the NBC Sports app and NBCOlympics.com. The game will also be via available streaming services such as fuboTV, Hulu Plus Live TV and YouTube TV, which all carry the NBC family of networks.
USA vs. Japan record
To say USA and Japan have dominated softball at the Olympics would be an understatement. Since the sport made its Olympic debut at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, no team other than the two nations has won gold at the Olympics, with the USA triumphing in 1996, 2000 and 2004 and Japan claiming gold in 2008.
The USA defeated Japan 2-1 in the final of the Sydney Olympics in 2000, with Japan returning the favor eight years in Beijing, when it prevailed 3-1.
The world championships tell a similar tale, with the two rivals winning the last seven World Baseball Softball Confederation titles—five to the USA and two to Japan.
The dominance has been on display at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics so far, where the USA has won all its five round robin games, while Japan has won four with the only defeat coming against the USA on Monday.
