Football at the Summer Olympics

Football.

Association football, usually known simply as football or soccer, has been included in every Olympiad except 1896 and 1932 as a men's competition sport. Women's football was added to the official programme in 1996.

Early history

Football was not on the programme at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, as international football was in its infancy at the time. However, some sources claim that an unofficial football tournament was organised during the first competition, in which an Athens XI lost to a team representing Smyrna (Izmir), then part of the Ottoman Empire. Smyrna went on to be beaten (15-0) by a team from Denmark. However, it is in fact unclear whether any competition took place at all; the Olympic historian Bill Mallon has written: "Supposedly a match between a Greek club and a Danish club took place. No such 1896 source supports this and we think this is an error which has been perpetrated in multiple texts. No such match occurred".

Tournaments were played at the 1900 and 1904 games and the Intercalated Games of 1906, but these were contested by various clubs and scratch teams, and although the IOC considers them to be official Olympic events they are not recognized by FIFA. In 1906 teams from Great Britain, Germany, Austria, Netherlands and France were withdrawn from an unofficial competition and left Denmark, Smyrna (one Armenian, two Frenchmen and eight Britons), Athens and Thessaloniki Music Club to compete. Denmark won the final against Smyrna 9-0.

British successes

In the London Games of 1908 a proper international tournament was organised by the Football Association, featuring just six teams, rising to 11 in 1912 (at which event the competition was organised by the Swedish Football Association). These early matches were fairly unbalanced, as witnessed by some large scores; two players, Sophus Nielsen in 1908 and Gottfried Fuchs in 1912, each scored ten goals in a match, a record that stood for over 90 years. All players were amateurs, in accordance with the Olympic spirit, which meant that some countries could not send their full international team. The National Olympic Committee for Great Britain and Ireland asked the Football Association to send an English national amateur team (some of whom played with professional clubs within England, most notably Derby County's Ivan Sharpe and Chelsea's Vivian Woodward), who managed to win the first two official tournaments convincingly, beating Denmark.

The 1920s and the rise of the Uruguayans

The competition became increasingly important throughout the 1920s, although that decade witnessed a bad day in the history of the Olympic movement when, during the 1920 final, Czechoslovakia walked from the field of play, in order to raise awareness of their displeasure regarding the refereeing of John Lewis and the militarised mood within the stadium in Antwerp. In both the 1924 and 1928 editions of the competition, the Olympic movement was given an almighty fillip with the entrance of Uruguay and Argentina. The first of those teams were successful in both competitions (these were the only competitions that they have ever participated in) and FIFA became conscious that the Olympic movement was not only hindering the ability of nations to participate on an equal footing but, given that the Olympics only permitted amateurs to participate, was not representing the true strength of the international game.

The Olympics after the first World Cup

With Henri Delaunay's proposal in 1929 to initiate a professional World Championship of football (hence the launch of the World Cup in Uruguay in 1930), FIFA did not want the Olympic tournament to overshadow their own showpiece event, so football was dropped from the 1932 Los Angeles Games (the official reason was that the game was not popular in the United States), and it returned at the 1936 Berlin Games. The German organisers were intent on the return of the game to the Olympic movement since it guaranteed vital income into the organisation's coffers. In any event, it proved to be a considerable success, more so since the German national side was defeated by Norway in a second round match that was attended by Adolf Hitler. As professionalism spread around the world, the gap in quality between the two tournaments widened. The countries that benefited most were the Soviet Bloc countries of Eastern Europe, where the top athletes were state sponsored while retaining their status as amateurs. Between 1948 and 1980, 23 out of 27 Olympic medals were won by Eastern European countries, with only Sweden (gold in 1948 and bronze in 1952), Denmark (silver in 1960) and Japan (bronze in 1968) breaking their dominance.

Changes and developments

For the 1984 Los Angeles Games, the IOC felt a change was necessary to bring interest back, and decided to admit professional players. FIFA still did not want the Olympics to rival the World Cup, so a compromise was struck that allowed teams from Africa, Asia, Oceania and CONCACAF to field their strongest professional sides, while only allowing UEFA and CONMEBOL teams to pick players who had not previously played in a World Cup. Many teams therefore fielded very young teams, including France, who won the 1984 Olympic title in between two semi-final appearances at World Cups.

The idea of youth teams found favour at both FIFA and the IOC, and since 1992 players of the mens competition must be under 23 years of age, with three over-23 players allowed per squad. The tournament is now effectively an "Under-23 World Cup", complementing FIFA's own tournaments at Under-20 and Under-17 levels. The new format allows teams from around the world to compete equally, and African and Asian countries have taken particular advantage of this, with Nigeria and Cameroon winning in 1996 and 2000 respectively.

Because of the unusual format, several of the historically strongest footballing countries have unimpressive Olympic records. The Netherlands won bronze in the first three tournaments, but has not reached the finals since 1952. Uruguay won the tournament in their first two attempts, in 1924 and 1928, but those are their only appearances. Argentina won silver twice before the 2004 Athens Games, but its appearance in Athens, in which it won the gold medal, was only their fifth overall. Brazil's two silver medals in the 1980s is the best they have achieved, and the men's team failed to qualify in 1992 and 2004. Hungary won three gold medals, in 1952, 1964 and 1968, but has not returned to the finals since 1996.

British non-involvement

After 1974, when the Football Association of England abolished the distinction between "amateur" and "professional" football, Great Britain no longer entered a football team into the qualifying competitions of the Olympics.

The four parts of the United Kingdom, known as the 'Home Nations' - England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales - have separate international football teams within FIFA, which includes a guaranteed position as Vice-Presidency on the FIFA Management Committee and have a 50% presence on the International Football Association Board (which sits annually to debate changes within the Laws of the Game).

With London now selected as the host for the 2012 Games there is considerable pressure within the English FA, British Olympic Committee and the British Government for the UK to field men's and women's teams at those games [1]; an idea the Football Association of Wales [2] and Scottish Football Association[3] have strongly objected to out of fear it may lead to their separate status in FIFA competitions being called into question. The Irish Football Association, which covers Northern Ireland, is less strong in its view [4].

A suggestion put forward by the FA in England is for the four constituent parts of the UK to play a tournament with the winning team going on to represent the UK in the Olympics. [5]

On Thursday, 24th July 2008, speaking about the proposal for a United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland football team at the 2012 London Olympics, the Scottish Football Association's Chief Executive, Gordon Smith said:

"The Scottish FA's position on this issue remains the same - we are opposed to the concept of a British football team. As we have said many times before, we feel that such a move would threaten the independent status of the Home Nations.

"Also, when we speak to our fan groups about this issue, they tell us that they are strongly opposed to the idea. As the governing body of football in this country, we will always do what is best for the sport here in Scotland.

"On a personal note, I feel that the Olympics should be the pinnacle of any sport and it is doubtful as to whether an age restricted football competition in the Olympics would ever be able to rival the World Cup." [6]

Venues

Due to the great number of large stadia required for the Olympic tournament, venues in distant cities - often more than 200 km (120 miles) away from the main host city - are typically used for the football tournament, especially in the early rounds. In an extreme example, two early-round venues for the 1984 Games were on the U.S. East Coast, well over 2,000 miles (3,200 km) from the host city of Los Angeles. The next Games held in the United States, the 1996 Games, were unique in that no matches were held in the host city of Atlanta; the nearest venue and the site of all finals was about 65 miles (105 km) away on the University of Georgia campus in Athens.

Here is a list of all the venues used in the Olympic football tournaments

Edition of the Olympic Games	City	Stadium
Athens 1896	Athens	Athens Stadium (Demonstration Sport)
Paris 1900	Paris	Vélodrome de Vincennes
Saint Louis 1904	Saint Louis, Missouri	Francis Field
London 1908	London	White City Stadium
Stockholm 1912	Stockholm	Stockholms Olympiastadion
		Råsunda Stadium
		Tranebergs Idrottsplats
Antwerp 1920	Antwerp	Olympisch Stadion
		Royal Antwerp Football Club Stadium
	Brussels	Stade de l’Union St. Gilloise
	Ghent	Stade d’A.A. La Gantoise
Paris 1924	Paris	Stade Olympique, Colombes
		Stade Bergeyre
		Stade de Paris, Saint-Ouen
		Stade Pershing, Vincennes
Amsterdam 1928	Amsterdam	Olympisch Stadion
	Rotterdam	Het Kasteel
		De Kuip
	Arnhem	Monnikenhuize
Los Angeles 1932	No football tournament
Berlin 1936	Berlin	Olympiastadion
		Poststadion, Tiergarten
		Mommsenstadion, Charlottenburg
		Herta-BSC-Platz
London 1948	London	Empire Stadium, Wembley
		White Hart Lane, Tottenham
		Selhurst Park, Crystal Palace
		Craven Cottage, Fulham
		Griffin Park, Brentford
		Arsenal Stadium, Highbury
		Cricklefield Stadium, Ilford
		Green Pond Road Stadium, Walthamstow
		Champion Hill, Dulwich
	Brighton	Goldstone Ground
	Portsmouth	Fratton Park
Helsinki 1952	Helsinki	Olympiastadion
		Football Grounds
	Turku	Kupittaa Stadium
	Tampere	Ratina Stadion
	Lahti	Kisapuisto
	Kotka	Kotka Stadion
Melbourne 1956	Melbourne	Melbourne Cricket Ground
		Football and Athletics Ground, Olympic Park
Rome 1960	Rome	Stadio Flaminio
	Florence	Stadio Comunale
	Grosseto	Stadio Comunale
	Livorno	Stadio Ardenza
	Pescara	Stadio Adriatico
	L'Aquila	Stadio Comunale
	Naples	Stadio Fuorigrotta
Tokyo 1964	Tokyo	National Olympic Stadium
		Prince Chichibu Memorial Field
		Komazawa Stadium
		Omiya Football Stadium
	Yokohama	Mitsuzawa Stadium
Mexico City 1968	Mexico City	Estadio Azteca
	Puebla	Estadio Cuauhtémoc
	Guadalajara	Estadio Jalisco
	León	Estadio León
Munich 1972	Munich	Olympiastadion
	Augsburg	Rosenaustadion
	Ingolstadt	ESV-Stadion
	Regensburg	Jahnstadion
	Nuremberg	Frankenstadion
	Passau	Drei Flüsse Stadion
Montreal 1976	Montreal	Stade Olympique
	Sherbrooke	Municipal Stadium
	Toronto	Varsity Stadium
	Ottawa	Lansdowne Stadium
Moscow 1980	Moscow	Lenin Stadium
		Dynamo Stadium
	Leningrad	Kirov Stadium
	Kiev	Republican Stadium
	Minsk	Dinamo Stadium
Los Angeles 1984	Pasadena, California	Rose Bowl
	Boston, Massachusetts	Harvard Stadium
	Annapolis, Maryland	Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
	Stanford, California	Stanford Stadium
Seoul 1988	Seoul	Jamsil Olympic Stadium
		Dongdaemun Stadium
	Daegu	Daegu Stadium
	Busan	Busan Stadium
	Gwangju	Gwangju Stadium
	Daejeon	Daejeon Stadium
Barcelona 1992	Barcelona	Camp Nou
		Estadio Sarriá
	Sabadell	Estadi de la Nova Creu Alta
	Zaragoza	Estadio La Romareda
	Valencia	Estadio Luis Casanova
Atlanta 1996	Athens, Georgia	Sanford Stadium
	Orlando, Florida	Citrus Bowl
	Birmingham, Alabama	Legion Field
	Miami, Florida	Miami Orange Bowl
	Washington, D.C.	Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium
Sydney 2000	Sydney	Olympic Stadium
		Sydney Football Stadium
	Brisbane	Brisbane Cricket Ground
	Adelaide	Hindmarsh Stadium
	Canberra	Bruce Stadium
	Melbourne	Melbourne Cricket Ground
Athens 2004	Athens	Athens Olympic Stadium
		Karaiskaki Stadium
	Patras	Pampeloponnisiako Stadium
	Volos	Panthessaliko Stadium
	Thessaloniki	Kaftanzoglio Stadium
	Iraklion	Pankritio Stadium
Beijing 2008	Beijing	Beijing National Stadium
		Olympic Sports Center Stadium
		Workers' Stadium
	Tianjin	Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium
	Shanghai	Shanghai Stadium
	Qinhuangdao	Qinhuangdao Olympic Sports Centre Stadium
	Shenyang	Shenyang Olympic Sports Centre Stadium
London 2012	London	Wembley Stadium
	Glasgow	Hampden Park
	Cardiff	Millennium Stadium
	Manchester	Old Trafford
	Newcastle upon Tyne	St James' Park
	Birmingham	Villa Park

Events

Event	96	00	04	08	12	20	24	28	32	36	48	52	56	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	00	04	08	Years
Men's event		X	X	X	X	X	X	X		X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	24
Women's event																							X	X	X	X	4

Participating nations

Men

(Note: Where applicable, numbers refer to the number of teams from each country)

Nation	00	04	08	12	20	24	28	36	48	52	56	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	00	04	08	Years
Afghanistan	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Algeria	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Argentina	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	Y	7
Australia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	7
Austria	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4
Belgium	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	4
Brazil	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	-	Y	11
Bulgaria	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4
Burma	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Cameroon	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	3
Canada	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
Chile	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	4
China	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	4
Chinese Taipei	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Colombia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	4
Costa Rica	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	-	3
Ivory Coast	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	1
Cuba	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Czech Republic	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	1
Czechoslovakia	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	5
Denmark	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	8
North Korea	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
East Germany	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
Egypt	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	10
El Salvador	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Estonia	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Finland	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4
France	Y	-	2	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	11
Germany	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	8
Ghana	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	-	6
Great Britain	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8
Greece	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	3
Guatemala	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	3
Guinea	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Honduras	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	2
Hungary	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	9
India	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4
Indonesia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Iran	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
Iraq	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	4
Ireland	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Israel	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Italy	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	15
Japan	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	8
South Korea	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	8
Kuwait	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	3
Latvia	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Lithuania	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Luxembourg	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	5
Malaysia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Mali	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	1
Mexico	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	Y	-	7
Morocco	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	6
Netherlands	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	8
New Zealand	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	1
Netherlands Antilles	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Nigeria	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	Y	6
Norway	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	5
Paraguay	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	2
Peru	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Poland	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	7
Portugal	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	3
Qatar	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	2
Romania	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Russia	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Saudi Arabia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	2
Serbia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	1
Serbia and Montenegro	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	1
Slovakia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	1
Spain	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	9
Sudan	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Sweden	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	9
Switzerland	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Syria	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Thailand	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
Tunisia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	Y	-	4
Turkey	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	5
Uruguay	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	2
United States	-	2	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	14
Soviet Union	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	6
Venezuela	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1
Yugoslavia	-	-	-	-	Y	Y	-	-	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	Y	Y	Y	-	-	-	-	-	10
Zambia	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	Y	-	Y	-	-	-	-	-	2
Total nations	3	2	5	11	14	22	17	16	18	25	11	16	14	16	16	13	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16

Women

Numbers refer to the final placing of each team at the respective Games.

Nation	96	00	04	08	Years
Argentina	–	–	–	Q	1
Australia	–	7	5	–	2
Brazil	4	4	2	2	4
Canada	–	–	–	Q	1
China	2	5	9	Q	4
Denmark	8	–	–	–	1
Germany	5	3	3	3	4
Greece	–	–	10	–	1
Japan	7	–	7	4	3
Mexico	–	–	8	–	1
New Zealand	–	–	–	Q	1
Nigeria	–	8	6	Q	3
North Korea	–	–	–	Q	1
Norway	3	1	–	Q	3
Sweden	6	6	4	Q	4
United States	1	2	1	1	4
Total nations	8	8	10	12

Men's tournament

The qualifying tournament, like that for the World Cup, is organised along continental lines. Most continental confederations organise a special Under-23 qualifying tournament, although the European qualifiers are drawn from the finalists of the UEFA Under-21 Championship (in practice, an U-23 event). For the 2008 Beijing Games, the number of places allocated to each continent was:

• Europe - 4
• Asia - 4 (including hosts China)
• Africa - 3
• South America - 2
• North America - 2
• Oceania - 1

Women's tournament

The women's tournament is contested between full national sides, with no age restrictions. The teams are chosen from the best of the previous year's World Cup, with one spot reserved for the host country.

The first women's tournament was at the 1996 Atlanta Games. The US won the gold medal, and picked up silver in 2000 after an extra time defeat by Norway. The finals of the next two tournaments, in 2004 and 2008, also went to extra time, with the USA defeating Brazil both times.

Allocation of places for each continent in the 2008 Games was:

• Europe - 3
• Africa - 1.5
• Asia - 3 (including host China)
• South America - 1.5
• North America - 2
• Oceania - 1

Medal table

2	Hungary (HUN)	3	1	1	5
3	Great Britain (GBR)	3	0	0	3
4	Argentina (ARG)	2	2	0	4
5	Soviet Union (URS)	2	0	3	5
6	Uruguay (URU)	2	0	0	2
7	Yugoslavia (YUG)	1	3	1	5
8	Poland (POL)	1	2	0	3
9	East Germany (GDR)	1	1	1	3
10	Czechoslovakia (TCH)	1	1	0	2
	France (FRA)	1	1	0	2
	Nigeria (NGR)	1	1	0	2
	Spain (ESP)	1	1	0	2
14	Italy (ITA)	1	0	2	3
	Norway (NOR)	1	0	2	3
	Sweden (SWE)	1	0	2	3
17	Belgium (BEL)	1	0	1	2
18	Cameroon (CMR)	1	0	0	1
	Canada (CAN)	1	0	0	1
20	Brazil (BRA)	0	4	2	6
21	Denmark (DEN)	0	3	1	4
22	Bulgaria (BUL)	0	1	1	2
23	Austria (AUT)	0	1	0	1
	China (CHN)	0	1	0	1
	Paraguay (PAR)	0	1	0	1
	Spain (ESP)	0	1	0	1
	Switzerland (SUI)	0	1	0	1
28	Germany (GER)	0	0	3	3
	Netherlands (NED)	0	0	3	3
30	Chile (CHI)	0	0	1	1
	United Team of Germany (EUA)	0	0	1	1
	Ghana (GHA)	0	0	1	1
	Japan (JPN)	0	0	1	1
	West Germany (FRG)	0	0	1	1
Total		28	28	29	85

Men's results

Year	Host	Final			Third Place Match
		Winner	Score	Runner-up	3rd Place	Score	4th Place
1900 Details	Paris	Great Britain		France	Belgium		only three teams entered
1904 Details	St. Louis	Canada		United States	United States		only three teams entered
1908 Details	London	Great Britain	2 - 0	Denmark	Netherlands	2 - 0	Sweden
1912 Details	Stockholm	Great Britain	4 - 2	Denmark	Netherlands	9 - 0	Finland
1920 Details	Antwerp	Belgium		Spain	Netherlands		Italy
1924 Details	Paris	Uruguay	3 - 0	Switzerland	Sweden	1 - 1 aet	Netherlands
					Match replay: 3 - 1
1928 Details	Amsterdam	Uruguay	1 - 1 aet	Argentina	Italy	11 - 3	Egypt
		Match replay: 2 - 1
1932	Los Angeles	No football tournament			No football tournament
1936 Details	Berlin	Italy	2 - 1 aet	Austria	Norway	3 - 2	Poland
1948 Details	London	Sweden	3 - 1	Yugoslavia	Denmark	5 - 3	Great Britain
1952 Details	Helsinki	Hungary	2 - 0	Yugoslavia	Sweden	2 - 0	West Germany
1956 Details	Melbourne	Soviet Union	1 - 0	Yugoslavia	Bulgaria	3 - 0	India
1960 Details	Rome	Yugoslavia	3 - 1	Denmark	Hungary	2 - 1	Italy
1964 Details	Tokyo	Hungary	2 - 1	Czechoslovakia	East Germany	3 - 1	United Arab Republic
1968 Details	Mexico City	Hungary	4 - 1	Bulgaria	Japan	2 - 0	Mexico
1972 Details	Munich	Poland	2 - 1	Hungary	Soviet Union	2 - 2 aet	East Germany
1976 Details	Montreal	East Germany	3 - 1	Poland	Soviet Union	2 - 0	Brazil
1980 Details	Moscow	Czechoslovakia	1 - 0	East Germany	Soviet Union	2 - 0	Yugoslavia
1984 Details	Los Angeles	France	2 - 0	Brazil	Yugoslavia	2 - 1	Italy
1988 Details	Seoul	Soviet Union	2 - 1 aet	Brazil	West Germany	3 - 0	Italy
1992 Details	Barcelona	Spain	3 - 2	Poland	Ghana	1 - 0	Australia
1996 Details	Atlanta	Nigeria	3 - 2	Argentina	Brazil	5 - 0	Portugal
2000 Details	Sydney	Cameroon	2 - 2 asdet	Spain	Chile	2 - 0	United States
		5 - 3 on penalty shootout
2004 Details	Athens	Argentina	1 - 0	Paraguay	Italy	1 - 0	Iraq
2008 Details	Beijing	Argentina	1 - 0	Nigeria	Brazil	3 - 0	Belgium

• Key:
  • aet - after extra time
  • asdet - after sudden death extra time

Men's top scorers by tournament

Year	Player	Goals
1900	Unknown
1904	Alexander Hall Tom Taylor	3
1908	Sophus Nielsen	11
1912	Gottfried Fuchs	10
1920	Herbert Karlsson	7
1924	Pedro Petrone	8
1928	Domingo Tarasconi	9
1936	Annibale Frossi	7
1948	John Hansen Gunnar Nordahl	7
1952	Rajko Mitić Branko Zebec	7
1956	Todor Veselinović Dimitar Milanov Neville D'Souza	4
1960	Hans Nielsen	8
1964	Ferenc Bene	12
1968	Kunishige Kamamoto	7
1972	Kazimierz Deyna	9
1976	Andrzej Szarmach	6
1980	Sergei Andreev	5
1984	Borislav Cvetković Stjepan Deveric Daniel Xuereb	5
1988	Romário	7
1992	Andrzej Juskowiak	7
1996	Bebeto Hernán Crespo	6
2000	Iván Zamorano	6
2004	Carlos Tévez	8
2008	Giuseppe Rossi	4

Women's results

Year	Host	Final			Third Place Match
		Winner	Score	Runner-up	3rd Place	Score	4th Place
1996 Details	Atlanta	United States	2 - 1	China	Norway	2 - 0	Brazil
2000 Details	Sydney	Norway	3 - 2 asdet	United States	Germany	2 - 0	Brazil
2004 Details	Athens	United States	2 - 1 aet	Brazil	Germany	1 - 0	Sweden
2008 Details	Beijing	United States	1 - 0 aet	Brazil	Germany	2 - 0	Japan

• Key:
  • aet - after extra time
  • asdet - after sudden death extra time

Women's top scorers by tournament

Year	Player	Goals
1996	Ann Kristin Aarønes Linda Medalen Pretinha	4
2000	Sun Wen	4
2004	Cristiane Birgit Prinz	5
2008	Cristiane	5

See also

• Football at the 1906 Summer Olympics (Intercalated Games)