From summers of setbacks to summer of hope: With both teams in Olympic quarterfinals, U.S. soccer suddenly fun again

As the summer began, it seemed as if the joy had been drained from American soccer.

On the U.S. men's national team side, Gregg Berhalter had just been fired in the wake of the group's unexpected Copa America failure on home soil. It was an embarrassment of epic proportions, as the U.S. became the first-ever host country to crash out in the group stage.

The U.S. women's national team was reeling, fresh off two semi-disappointing performances in Olympic send-off friendlies against Mexico and Costa Rica, all in the long shadow of the 2023 World Cup disappointment that also led to a coaching change, with Emma Hayes just getting started.

And, on the men's Olympic side, Marko Mitrovic's U23 Olympic roster was largely panned. Several exclusions stood out while a few players that were included did little to inspire. The equation seemed too difficult to solve, with none of those factors adding up to what would looked like sustained Olympic runs.

Nothing will completely cleanse the bad aftertaste of the last year - failed World Cup and Copa America missions - but in over the past week, these two U.S. Olympic teams have certainly done their best. American soccer's run through the Olympics has gone better than anyone could have expected, with both teams fighting their way into this week's quarterfinals - Friday for the men, Saturday for the women.

That's a significant development for both programs and American soccer. The job is far from finished, but for the moment, anyway, It gives both teams a chance at a medal, and restored the fun for fans. And after an early-summer humbling, this late-summer run has given the country something even more important: hope.