Olympics A to Z : A brief history of Football at the Games

The sport has been part of the quadrennial event ever since 1900.

Football is going to be one of the sports that will be an integral part of the upcoming Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.

Interestingly, the football tournament starts earlier than the opening ceremony of the Olympics due to its length. The sport of football has been a part of all editions of the Olympics, with 1896 and 1932 as exceptions. Women’s football is also a part of the multi-sport event since its inclusion from the 1996 Atlanta Games.

History

While the previous editions had football as exhibition events, the first medal event was held at the 1908 London Olympics. This tournament was recognized by the Football Association and featured six teams. England emerged as winners at both the 1908 and 1912 Olympics, after beating Denmark on both occasions in the final. 

The International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) stipulations meant only amateur players represented the countries. FIFA took cognizance of this fact. They organized the World Championship of Football (later known as the World Cup) to rival the growing popularity of football at the Olympics.

During the 1984 Los Angeles UGames, the IOC finally decided to admit professional football players, after about 50 years of domination from countries belonging to the Soviet bloc, which went on until 1992. Later in 1992, to preserve the grandeur of the World Cup, FIFA agreed  to let countries send their -23 sides. They further agreed to allow three players over that age per squad from 1996 onward.

Gold medal winners of the past

Hungary have won three football gold medals in 1952, 1964 and 1968 respectively. The other country to have won three gold medals as well is Great Britain (1900, 1908 and 1912).  

Argentina (2004, 2008), Soviet Union (1956, 1988) and Uruguay (1924, 1928) have won gold medals on two occasions each in the past.

The other countries to win the gold medal on at least one occasion are: Brazil (2016), Yugoslavia (1960), Poland (1972), Spain (1992), East Germany (1976), Nigeria (1996), France (1984), Czechoslovakia (1984), Italy (1936), Sweden (1948), Belgium (1920), Mexico (2012), Canada (1904) and Cameroon (2000).

In terms of overall medals, Brazil have won the most with six (one gold, three silver and two bronze). Hungary, Soviet Union and Yugoslavia are joint-second with five overall medals each. 

In the women’s football tournament, since its inception in 1996, the USA have won four golds (1996, 2004, 2008, 2012). Norway (2000) and Germany (2016) have won one gold each. 

Trivia

India’s Neville D’Souza was the joint-top scorer with four goals in the football tournament at the 1956 Games in Melbourne, Australia. The Indian team finished fourth and narrowly missed out on a bronze medal. 

D’Souza scored a hat-trick, the first by an Asian player at the Olympics, in a 4-2 win over hosts Australia in the quarterfinals. India lost to Yugoslavia in the semis and missed out on a medal after losing to Bulgaria in the bronze medal match. 

The 2016 Rio Games saw 104 goals in the football tournament, which is a record. 2016 gold medal winners Brazil have 124 total goals in the history of the Olympics, only second to Italy who have 125.

Top Scorers

In the Men's football event, Hungary’s Antal Dunai and Denmark’s Sophus Nielsen lead the all-time scoring charts with 13 goals each. Ferenc Bene is the second player on the charts with 12 goals for Hungary. Domingo Tarasconi of Argentina and Pedro Petrone of Uruguay are joint-third with 11 goals respectively.

In the Women’s football section, Cristiane of Brazil has scored the most goals (14). Christine Sinclair of Canada is on the second spot with 11 goals. Brazil’s Marta and Germany’s Birgit Prinz are joint-third with 10 goals each.  

Top Contenders (Men’s)

Germany

Germany are in Group D alongside teams like Brazil, Ivory Coast and Saudi Arabia. The European nation will be the favourites due to the fact that they recently won the UEFA Euro U-21 title. Several of their young players will go on to represent the country at the Olympics tournament as well.

Some notable mentions include the likes of Florian Wirtz and Mergim Berisha. It will be interesting to see which three senior players over the age of 23 years will join the rest of the squad. 

Top Contenders (Women’s)

USA

Unlike the men’s tournament, the women's section does not have age restrictions. Full-fledged international teams that qualified can participate in the tournament. The USWNT will be strong favorites to win the gold medal. The World No.1 ranked outfit won the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 2019.

Their squad will include some of the best footballers such as Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe and Tobin Heath. The USWNT last won the gold in women’s football at the 2012 London Games and will look to add another one to their tally of four.

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