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Ask a sports fan to think of the Olympics and, depending on their age and nationality their first thought might be any one of a number of different events or stars. However, on the whole, the average person is most likely to conjure up an image of a 100m sprinter, such as Usain Bolt, or certainly one of the other major track and field superstars.
Whilst the likes of swimming, gymnastics, weightlifting or rowing might all be seen as key events by many in different parts of the world, few anywhere are likely to closely associate football with the Games. In some regards this should be a surprise, as the sport has a long history at the Olympics. However, the key fact is that the Olympics are in no way the pinnacle of the sport, as we shall see.
In this article, we take a wider look at what role football has played in the Olympics. We will look at its history, including the times it has featured, who has won the big medals, and what rules are in place regarding who can play.
How Many Times Has Football Been Part of the Olympics?
It may surprise many, who perhaps think of football as a modern addition to the Olympics, but the beautiful game has been played at almost every modern summer Olympic Games. There are just two exceptions to that – one back in the 19th century and the other almost 100 years ago.
The first Olympics, back in 1896, did not include football and, more recently, the 1932 Games did not. It is not entirely clear why there was no football competition in 1896, other than the fact that football in general, and certainly the international element of it, was still in its relative infancy.
In 1932, there was a much clearer reason that football was not played and that was because there was a desire to push a newer competition instead. You might have heard of it: the FIFA World Cup. That was first played in 1930 and then again in 1934 and it was felt that whilst the new World Cup was being established, all the attention should be on that, rather than the Olympics.
In total, that means that the 2024 Olympics in Paris were the 28th time that football was played at the sporting extravaganza. We should caveat that statement with the information that women’s football is a much newer addition. That was first played in 1996, in Atlanta, the US being the superpower of women’s football and ahead of the curve in terms of development. Here we will be focussing on the men’s game, though as we will see, there are some very big differences between the men’s Olympic football competition and the women’s.
Winners & Medals
The earliest years of the Games featured some rather confusing and even disputed rules and teams. The rules, as we will see, have changed several times over the years, but in 1900 and 1904 it was essentially club teams and so-called scratch teams, although these did represent the nations they were from. For example, in 1900, whilst Team GB won, it was actually a group of players from London side, Upton Park, an amateur team.
Early Winners
Great Britain dominated the earliest years of the Games, winning football gold in 1900, in Paris, as well as 1908 on home soil and 1912 in Stockholm. Uruguay also won Olympic gold in consecutive Games, doing so in 1924 and 1928, and it was this success that made FIFA decide to allow the nation to host the first World Cup in 1930 (which they also won).
1950s-1990s
Hungary were the next great Olympic footballing nation and whilst their brilliant sides of the 1950s and 1960s never managed to win the World Cup, they claimed Olympic gold in 1952, 1964 and 1968. Not a nation, but a continent, Africa too is yet to see one of their teams win the World Cup, but Nigeria (1996) and Cameroon (2000) have won the Olympics.
More Recently
More recently Latin America has been in the ascendency, with Argentina winning gold in 2004 and 2008, Mexico winning at London 2012, and then Brazil winning in 2016 on home soil and again in the delayed Tokyo Games.
Teams with Multiple Wins
Hungary and GB are the only teams with three wins, but it is the former that edge it thanks to silver in 1972 and bronze in 1960. Four nations, Brazil, Argentina, Soviet Union and Uruguay, have two golds, though of those Brazil’s seven medals in total (an overall record), means they edge third place in the standings. In total, 19 different countries have won Olympic football gold, including Poland, Canada and Belgium.
Is the Olympics a Serious Tournament?
Anyone who earns a gold medal is entitled to be hugely proud of their achievement and so “serious” is perhaps the wrong word. However, when it comes to the men’s tournament, the Olympics is not a hugely important part of the football calendar. Indeed, this marks one key difference between the men’s and women’s tournaments.
Whilst women’s Olympic football has less history, their tournament is fully sanctioned by FIFA and forms part of FIFA’s International Match Calendar (IMC). This means that, unlike the men’s event, clubs must release players for the women’s Olympic football tournament and partly due to this, the Games is the second-most prestigious and coveted event in women’s football (after the World Cup).
Men’s Olympic Football Retains a Low Profile
Returning to the men, in order to protect the World Cup, and in the modern era to avoid clashing with clubs, their tournament works very differently. The exact structure and rules have changed over the years but for much of its history only players aged under 23 have been allowed to take part. Each nation is allowed three older players but as the Games are not part of the IMC, clubs must agree to release those players (indeed all and any players, irrespective of age).
Due to the age restrictions, and the fact that the very best players are rarely present (due to that and not being granted release by their clubs), men’s Olympic football has a relatively low profile. That said, some nations certainly take it more seriously than others, with a young Neymar playing for Brazil in 2012, and Richarlison being the tournament’s top scorer in 2021.