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This article is about British representation at Olympic football tournaments. For information about Britain in international football in general, see United Kingdom national football team
This page is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Great Britain women's Olympic football team.
Great Britain
Nickname(s)Team GB
AssociationThe FA (1908–1972; 2011–)
CaptainRyan Giggs
Most capsJim Lewis (11)
Mike Pinner (11)[1]
Top scorerHarry Walden (9)
Jim Lewis (9)[1]
First colours
Second colours
First international
United Kingdom Great Britain and Ireland 12 – 1 Sweden Sweden
(London; 20 October 1908)
Biggest win
United Kingdom Great Britain and Ireland 12 – 1 Sweden Sweden
(London; 20 October 1908)
Biggest defeat
Bulgaria Bulgaria 6 – 1 Great Britain United Kingdom
(Melbourne, Australia; 30 November 1956)
Olympic Games
Appearances8[2] (first in 1908)
Best resultGold: 1908,[2] 1912[2]
WebsiteFootball at Team GB
Olympic medal record
Men's Football
Gold medal – first place 1900 Paris Team
Gold medal – first place 1908 London Team
Gold medal – first place 1912 Stockholm[2] Team

The Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic football team is the men's football team that represents the United Kingdom at the Summer Olympic Games (where it competes as Great Britain, currently branded Team GB). The team is organised by the English Football Association (FA) as the footballing representative of the British Olympic Association. The team is not a member of FIFA and only competes in the Olympic Games. In other international football tournaments, the Home Nations of the United Kingdom (England and wales) are represented by their own national teams, a situation which pre-dated the establishment of a GB team.

The team first competed at the FA organised tournament for the 1908 Olympics held in London, which was the first games that featured representative teams using players selected nationally (prior games in 1900 & 1904 used club teams). This team and the two that followed in 1912 and 1920 featured only English amateur players, and is seen by some as merely an extension of the English amateur team, set up in 1906 in response to the rise of the professional game. [4] In this period the team won the gold medal at the 1908 and 1912 tournaments, although exitted at Round 1 in 1920. A dispute between the FA and FIFA over the inclusion of professionals saw the FA withdraw from Olympic football in 1924 and 1928, and saw no football at the Olympics at all in 1930.[1]

After the creation of the FIFA World Cup, it was agreed that Olympic football would become exclusively amateur,[5] leading to the team competing again in the 1936 Games, this time incorporating players from other Home Nations. After the break caused by World War II, the team then competed in every games from 1948 until 1972, albeit failing to qualify for the main tournament after 1960.[1] In this period the team's best performance was 4th place in 1948 at the second Games hosted in London, under manager Matt Busby.[1]

After the FA abolished the distinction between amateur and professional players in 1974, it stopped entering a team. [4] By the 1992 games after various rule changes, teams could compete at the games using professionals, but restricted to under 23 years old, with only three over-23 players allowed per squad.[5] Despite this, Great Britain did not enter a football team again until London won the right to host the 2012 games.[6][7] The FA are once again organising the team, with Stuart Pearce appointed manager in October 2011.[3] A women's team will also compete for the first time at the 2012 Games.

History

[edit]

Origins

[edit]

The FA was formed in London 1863, when thirteen teams met to draw up a shared rule list for football, in order to facilitate matches between clubs.[8] The question of the geographical remit of this organisation does not appear to have been asked, with the FA being formed before the rise of international football. The first football matches between national teams were arranged by the FA, who invited English and Scottish players to form representative teams.[8] The Scottish teams were made up almost entirely of Scottish residents in England and in order to encourage more Scottish based players to compete, an organisation in Scotland was sought to form the Scottish team.[8] For the 1872 game between Scotland and England in Glasgow, Queen's Park Football Club took on this role, and this game is now recognised as the first international match.[9] Within a year, the Scottish Football Association (SFA) was founded to facilitate these matches, and to organise football in Scotland more broadly. The third national football association, the Football Association of Wales was founded in 1876 and a fourth, the Irish Football Association, (IFA), was founded in 1880.

The practice of playing internationals between the four countries of the United Kingdom (also known as the home nations) was thus developed before football associations were developed elsewhere in the world and, no 'United Kingdom football association' was ever formed.[1] Outside of the UK, the first national associations were formed in 1889 (in Denmark and the Netherlands),[1] and these also began to pick their own national teams. When football was included at the 1900 Olympic Games, however, many nations were still struggling to raise a team,[1] and so club teams entered instead. Upton Park represented the UK, winning the gold medal.[4]

1908–1936

[edit]
1908 Great Britain and Ireland Olympic Football team

For the 1908 Olympic Games in London, the FA persuaded the IOC to include a football tournament, which they organised.[4] A team, made up entirely of English players, was entered.[10] Some sources continue to refer to this team as the England national amateur football team,[4] whilst others still simply label all participations as Great Britain.[11] Although the team competed as the United Kingdom and are listed as such, the official match report refers to "the English team".[12] An arrangement was reached with the other Home Nations' football associations, under which a Great Britain team consisting of amateur players organised by the FA would enter future tournaments.

Great Britain won the first Olympics football tournament in 1908, which was hosted in London. The football tournament was organised by the FA and all the matches were played at White City Stadium.[13] Great Britain won all three of their matches, defeating Sweden and Netherlands in the first two rounds. They met Denmark in the final, defeating them 2–0 with goals from Vivian Woodward and Frederick Chapman.[14] The team repeated this success at the 1912 Games.[15][16] Again, Britain won all three matches and defeated Denmark in the final, this time 4–2. Woodward, who scored in the previous final, was captain for this tournament.[17]

At the 1920 Summer Games, Britain lost in the first round in a surprise defeat to Norway.[18] Britain had played only amateur players, while other nations selected their team from all available players.[19] The tournament formed part of a rift which developed between the FA, who wanted the Olympics to remain an amateur only competition, and FIFA, who were keen on having a full football world championship.[20] This resulted in the FA leaving FIFA, as well as withdrawing from the 1924 and 1928 football tournaments.[21] Eventually, however, an agreement was reached in which the Olympic football tournament would be for amateur players only, with the FIFA World Cup created to include all players, professional and amateur.[21]

There was no football tournament at the 1932 games, so Britain's return to Olympic football came at the 1936 Summer Olympics. Great Britain were defeated in the quarter-finals, losing 5–4 to Poland.[22]

1948–1970

[edit]

Following the Second World War, Great Britain competed in all Olympic football tournaments from 1948 through to 1972. The 1948 tournament, which was hosted in London, was the team's most successful. By this time, it was recognised that Britain's amateur players were not of the same quality as they had been in earlier years, due to the rise of the professional game.[23] By contrast, teams in nations which had not yet developed professional leagues were able to field their strongest sides.[23] Manager Matt Busby picked a squad made up of players from all of the 'home nations',[23] and Britain progressed to the semi-final with wins over the Netherlands and France. Having lost the semi-final to Yugoslavia, Britain once again faced Denmark. This time, however, they were defeated 5–3 and missed out on a bronze medal.[24] Wembley Stadium hosted Great Britain's final two matches, though they also played at Craven Cottage and Highbury.

After 1948, Great Britain were never a significant threat at the Olympics again. They were eliminated after losing their opening match to Luxembourg in 1952,[1] and qualified for the 1956 only after other teams withdrew, before being beaten by Bulgaria in the quarter-finals.[1] Their final appearance at an Olympic Games came in 1960.[25] The squad was again selected from all of the home nations, with matches between the national amateur sides being used to chose a best 19.[25] Great Britain were eliminated in the first round, losing one, drawing one and winning one of their three matches.[25] After that Great Britain failed to qualify for the next three Olympics, with their final match being a 5–0 qualifying round defeat by Bulgaria[15] in 1971 following a 1–0 victory at Wembley Stadium against the same team.[26]

In 1974, the Football Association stopped recognising a distinction between professionals and amateurs, with all player subsequently registered simply as 'players', whether paid or unpaid.[27] This ended the existence of the England national amateur football team, which had always been the basis for the British Olympic team. As such, the FA stopped entering a football team into Olympic competition.

1972 to 2008

[edit]

For the 1984 Summer Olympics, professional footballers were allowed to compete at the Olympics for the first time.[5][28] Initially, European and South American teams were banned from playing players who had competed in the FIFA World Cup, but from the 1992 Summer Olympics eligibility for all nations was restricted to players aged under 23, except that three players of any age are allowed in the squad.[5] In Europe, the qualification for the Olympic football tournament is the UEFA Under–21 Championship, which each of the Home Nations enter. On three occasions, teams from Great Britain have finished in the qualifying positions:

The British Olympic Association initially refused to rule out the possibility of entry for the 2008 Summer Olympics,[29] but a team was not entered. England qualified for the Olympics by reaching the semi-finals of the 2007 Under–21 Championship, but Italy took their vacated place by winning a play-off match against Portugal. The England women's team also qualified for the 2008 Olympics, through their performance in the 2007 World Cup. They were denied a place at the Olympics because the other three Home Nations refused to give their consent.[30]

Reformation for London 2012

[edit]

Due to the success of the London 2012 Olympic bid, the United Kingdom gained the right to enter a team in the football tournament as host nation.[6][31] The British Olympic Association (BOA) stated it would enter a football team,[6] but the Scottish Football Association (SFA) refused even to attend meetings at which the Home Nations were to discuss the possibility[32] and the Football Association of Wales (FAW) withdrew from the negotiations.[33] The Irish Football Association (representing Northern Ireland) stated in October 2007 that they would not take part in a unified team, leaving the English Football Association as the only association willing to take part. The SFA's opposition to the plans were rooted primarily in the fear that the Home Nations would be forced to field a combined team in all competitions.[32] This would mean the loss of the special status of the Home Nations, established under FIFA's constitution.[34]

The FA released a supporters' shirt for fans of Team GB
Various fans, politicians and sports-people all gave their opinions with regards to the creation of a team. A 2005 opinion poll published by the BOA claimed that a majority of Scots supported the creation of a British team for the 2012 Olympics.[35] A joint statement issued by the official fan clubs of all four Home Nations voiced their opposition to the plan.[36] Various prominent politicians also offered their opinion as to whether there should be a British team in the 2012 Olympics. Prime Minister Gordon Brown stated during the 2008 Olympics that he wanted a British team and would work towards that happening, although he acknowledged that it could affect the autonomy of the Home Nations.[37] First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond then stated his opposition to a British team, arguing that Brown must be "seriously out of touch with Scotland" to support it.[38]

FIFA President Sepp Blatter initially assured each of the British Associations that their status would not be affected by fielding a combined team in 2012.[39] The SFA refused to change its position, arguing that Blatter's personal opinion and permission might not matter once he has left office, and that they did not wish to jeopardise their status.[32] Blatter seemed to change his view in March 2008, when he stated that "they should enter only a team composed of players from England"[40] and he suggested that the independent status of the four British associations could be harmed by a unified team.[40] UEFA chief executive David Taylor, a former chief executive of the SFA, said in August 2008 that a British Olympic team would threaten the existence of the individual home nations.[41] Taylor also said that the unique status of the Home Nations had come under attack before from other FIFA members, and that it was "difficult to see what guarantees could be given" to protect that status.[41] At a conference held in conjunction with the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, the prospect of a UK team for the 2012 Olympics was discussed by the FIFA Executive Committee, who gave their approval.[42]


From the world of sport, world 400m hurdles champion Dai Greene said that he felt that there should not be an Olympic football tournament because the Olympics is not the pinnacle of that sport.[43] He also expressed fears that coverage of the football team would overshadow interest in the other competitors.[43] Sebastian Coe, the director of the 2012 Olympics, regularly spoke out in support of the team.[44]

A compromise was eventually reached between the four associations, whereby a squad of English players only would represent the United Kingdom.[7] The football associations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales sent a joint letter to FIFA stating that they would not participate, but that they would not object to England participating alone.[7] This agreement was challenged by the BOA, who wanted to select players from all four countries and claimed it would be potentially discriminatory to only select English players.[45] Jim Boyce stated that there is no legal restriction on players being selected by the BOA[45] and the SFA admitted that it would have no legal grounds to prevent Scottish players from participating.[46] It was then confirmed that the FA intended to select players from outside England.[47] Eligible non-English players such as Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey expressed their desire to play in the squad, having posed for a photo-shoot wearing the replica shirts of the team.[48]

Pre-tournament preparations

[edit]

The FA announced in October 2011 that Stuart Pearce would be the manager. After this announcement, Pearce drew up an initial long-list of players who he wanted to consider for the squad, and wrote to all of these players to inform them of his choice.[49] Pearce said that players who did not want to be included would be able to inform him of their wishes at that stage.[49] It was stated in December 2011 that none of the players selected for the England squad for the 2012 UEFA European Championships would be selected, in order to avoid player fatigue.[50] In January 2012, it was revealed that 191 players had been contacted, with 7 declining to be considered for the team.[51] A further cut was announced in April 2012, with the shortlist of eligible players reduced to around 80.[52] The final pre-tournament cut occurred in early June, when a squad of 35 players was submitted to FIFA.[53][54]

Great Britain were placed in group A for the Olympic tournament prior to the draw.[55] The draw was held on 24 April 2012 and added Uruguay, UAE and Senegal to Great Britain's group.[56] The details of a pre-tournament friendly were announced a few days later. Although two friendlies had been predicted, only one match against Brazil was scheduled for the Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough on 20 July.[57] The game will be part of a double-header alongside Great Britain women against Sweden.

On 28 June, it was announced that David Beckham would not be in the squad, although Micah Richards, Ryan Giggs and Craig Bellamy would be included as the three over-age players.[58] The full squad for the Olympic Games was announced on 2 July 2012 containing 13 English and 5 Welsh players but no Scottish or Northern Irish players were selected.[59]

Colours

[edit]

The official kit for the 2012 Olympics, designed by Stella McCartney and manufactured by Adidas, was unveiled alongside the uniform for all Team GB Olympic competitors in March.[60] The front of the shirt is modelled on the right-hand side of a union flag, with the colours consisting of white and various shades of blue in keeping with the design of the uniforms in other sports.[61] The back of the shirt is navy blue, as are the shorts and socks.[60] The kit has a red trim.[60] The change kit is pale blue and white, with varying shades displaying the same union flag design as the home kit.[62] The crest is on the left breast of the shirt, and consists of a white shield with the generic Team GB logo in blue, with the words London 2012 below it.

Squads

[edit]

Composition

[edit]

The composition of the team has varied over time. All players in the 1908, 1912, 1920 and 1956 squads were English, while in other years players from Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales were all included.[1] The 2012 squad contains 13 English and 5 Welsh players but no Scottish or Northern Irish players.[59]

London 2012 squad

[edit]

The Great Britain squad for the 2012 Olympic Games was announced on 2 July 2012,[59] with Ryan Giggs named as captain.[63]

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK England Jack Butland (1993-03-10) 10 March 1993 (age 31) 0 0 Birmingham City
12 1GK England Jason Steele (1990-08-18) 18 August 1990 (age 34) 0 0 Middlesbrough
21 2DF England Ryan Bertrand (1989-08-05) 5 August 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Chelsea
3 2DF England Steven Caulker (1991-12-29) 29 December 1991 (age 32) 0 0 Tottenham Hotspur
5 2DF England Craig Dawson (1990-05-06) 6 May 1990 (age 34) 0 0 West Bromwich Albion
2 2DF England Micah Richards (1988-06-24) 24 June 1988 (age 36) 0 0 Manchester City
22 2DF Wales Neil Taylor (1989-02-07) 7 February 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Swansea City
23 2DF England James Tomkins (1989-03-29) 29 March 1989 (age 35) 0 0 West Ham United
8 3MF Wales Joe Allen (1990-03-14) 14 March 1990 (age 34) 0 0 Swansea City
10 3MF England Tom Cleverley (1989-08-12) 12 August 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Manchester United
4 3MF England Jack Cork (1989-06-25) 25 June 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Southampton
7 3MF Wales Ryan Giggs (c) (1973-11-29) 29 November 1973 (age 50) 0 0 Manchester United
18 3MF Wales Aaron Ramsey (1990-12-26) 26 December 1990 (age 33) 0 0 Arsenal
17 3MF England Scott Sinclair (1989-03-25) 25 March 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Swansea City
20 3MF England Danny Rose (1990-07-02) 2 July 1990 (age 34) 0 0 Tottenham Hotspur
11 4FW Wales Craig Bellamy (1979-07-13) 13 July 1979 (age 45) 0 0 Liverpool
16 4FW England Marvin Sordell (1991-02-17) 17 February 1991 (age 33) 0 0 Bolton Wanderers
9 4FW England Daniel Sturridge (1989-09-01) 1 September 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Chelsea

Forthcoming fixtures

[edit]
See also: Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament
20 July 2012 Friendly
match		 Great Britain  v  Brazil Middlesbrough
Stadium: Riverside Stadium
26 July 2012 2012 Olympics
Preliminaries		 Great Britain  v  Senegal Manchester
Stadium: Old Trafford
29 July 2012 2012 Olympics
Preliminaries		 Great Britain  v  United Arab Emirates London
Stadium: Wembley Stadium
1 August 2012 2012 Olympics
Preliminaries		 Great Britain  v  Uruguay Cardiff
Stadium: Millennium Stadium

Records and Statistics

[edit]

Olympics record

[edit]
Olympics record
Year Manager[64] Squad Round Position GP W D L GS GA
France 1900 Upton Park F.C. Gold medal 1
United States 1904 Did Not Enter
United Kingdom 1908 United Kingdom Alfred Davis 1908 squad Gold medal 1 3 3 0 0 18 1
Sweden 1912 United Kingdom Adrian Birch 1912 squad Gold medal 1 3 3 0 0 15 2
Belgium 1920 Wales George Latham 1920 squad Round 1 - 1 0 0 1 1 3
France 1924 Withdrew
Netherlands 1928
German Empire 1936 England William Voisey 1936 squad Quarter-finals - 2 1 0 1 6 5
United Kingdom 1948 Scotland Matt Busby 1948 squad Fourth place 4 4 2 0 2 7 11
Finland 1952 England Walter Winterbottom 1952 squad Preliminary round - 1 0 0 1 3 5
Australia 1956 England Norman Creek 1956 squad Quarter-finals - 1 0 0 1 1 6
Italy 1960 1960 squad Round 1 - 3 1 1 1 8 8
1964 to 1972 England Charles Hughes Did not qualify
1976 to 1988 Did not enter
France 1992 Withdrew
1996
2000 Did not enter
2004
China 2008 Withdrew
United Kingdom 2012 England Stuart Pearce[3] 2012 squad Qualified as host – – – – – – –
Total 9/25 3 medals 18 10 1 7 59 41

Overall Match Record

[edit]

As of July 2012 [1]

Played Won Draws Losses For Against GD
34 19 4 11 97 55 +42

Footnotes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Menary, Steve (2010). Gb United? British Olympic Football and the End of the Amateur Dream. Durington: Gardners Books. ISBN 1905411928.
  2. ^ a b c d In some years, notably 1908, 1912 and 1956, the Great Britain Olympic team was the England national amateur football team playing in the colours of the United Kingdom. Sources differ as to whether this team should be considered a GB team or an England national team.
  3. ^ a b c "Stuart Pearce and Hope Powell to lead GB Olympic teams". BBC Sport. 20 October 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
  4. ^ a b c d e Scoring for Britain Beck, Peter J. 1999; Routledge: 55
  5. ^ a b c d "Olympic Football Tournament (men)" (PDF). FIFA. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  6. ^ a b c "GB football team to enter Games". BBC Sport. BBC. 30 September 2006.
  7. ^ a b c "Nations pave way for 2012 GB team". BBC Sport. BBC. 29 May 2009.
  8. ^ a b c "History of The FA". The FA. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  9. ^ Paul Mitchell. "The first international football match". BBC News. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  10. ^ Football at the 1908 London Olympics Sports-Reference.com
  11. ^ Football Tournament of the Olympic Games – Overview RSSF. Retrieved 12–12–08.
  12. ^ "The Fourth Olympiad (London), Official Report" (PDF). (14.0 MB) . The British Olympic Council, 1908. Accessed 10–11–11
  13. ^ 1908 Olympic Football: The First World Cup More Than Mind Games. Accessed 10–11–11
  14. ^ I Olympic Football Tournament (London 1908) Linguasport. Accessed 10–11–11
  15. ^ a b "Happy to discuss Olympic team". The Football Association. 10 July 2003. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  16. ^ Games of the IV Olympiad. Aarhus, Lars; RSSSF, 15 October 1999. Retrieved on 5 July 2006.
  17. ^ II Olympic Football Tournament (Stockholm 1912) Linguasport. Accessed 10–11–11
  18. ^ "Antwerp, 1920". FIFA. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  19. ^ Beck, Peter J. (1999). Scoring for Britain: International Football and International Politics, 1900–1939. London: Frank Cass Publishers. ISBN 1368-9789. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: length (help)
  20. ^ "History of FIFA – The first FIFA World Cup™". FIFA. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  21. ^ a b Arnold, A.J. Tony. 2004. Harnessing the Forces of Commercialism: The Financial Development of the Football Association, 1863–1975 Sport in Society 7 (2) 232–248. Accessed 10–04–10, subscription required
  22. ^ "Olympic Football Tournament Berlin 1936, Match Report, Poland-Great Britain". FIFA. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  23. ^ a b c Dee, Mac (9 July 1948). "Busby Will Get Best Out of Amateurs". Sporting Mirror. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  24. ^ VII Olympic Football Tournament (London 1948) Linguasport. Accessed 10–11–11
  25. ^ a b c Plunkett, Paul. "London 2012: GB team at 1960 Games united by love of football". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  26. ^ "OTD: Football Olympians – The GB Olympic team played its last 'home' fixture on this day in 1971". The FA. 24 March 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
  27. ^ Chapman, Mark. "About The Project". England's Amateurs. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  28. ^ Tomlinson, Alan. "The commercialization of the Olympics: Cities, corporations and the Olympic commodity" (PDF). University of Brighton. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  29. ^ Goodbody, John (12 November 2005). "Britain looks to Beijing after Scotland's snub to 2012 Games". The Times. Retrieved 5 July 2006.
  30. ^ "Caborn blasts women's Games snub". BBC Sport. BBC. 4 December 2007.
  31. ^ Lisi, Clemente (20 February 2012). "Team Great Britain' for Olympics a Farce". www.realclearsports.com. Retrieved February 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  32. ^ a b c "No Scots for GB Olympic football". BBC Sport. BBC. 11 November 2005.
  33. ^ "Wales oppose GB Olympic football". BBC Sport. BBC. 6 December 2005.
  34. ^ "FIFA Statutes" (PDF). (6.67 MB). FIFA, 12 September 2005. Retrieved on 5 July 2006.
  35. ^ Mackay, Duncan (20 October 2005). "Survey shows Scots back united Olympic team". The Guardian.
  36. ^ "FANS GROUPS OPPOSE GB OLYMPIC TEAM". www.noteamgb.com. 1 October 2006. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  37. ^ "Brown pays tribute to GB success". BBC Sport. BBC. 24 August 2008.
  38. ^ "Salmond rejects UK football team". BBC News. BBC. 25 August 2008.
  39. ^ "Smith 'excited' by Olympic team". BBC Sport. BBC. 2 September 2005.
  40. ^ a b "Blatter against British 2012 team". BBC Sport. BBC. 9 March 2008.
  41. ^ a b "Uefa chief warns against GB team". BBC Sport. BBC. 28 August 2008.
  42. ^ a b "GB football team gets Fifa assent". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 December 2008.
  43. ^ a b "Dai Greene believes football has 'no place' at Olympics". BBC Sport. BBC. 22 November 2011. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
  44. ^ Williams, Dan. "Exclusive – Olympics chief Seb Coe on GB football team". ESPN. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  45. ^ a b "London 2012 Olympics: Gareth Bale and non-English players have 'legal right' to play for Team GB". Daily Telegraph. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  46. ^ "Great Britain Olympic football team agreement close". BBC Sport. BBC. 19 June 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  47. ^ "London 2012: Stuart Pearce and Hope Powell to lead GB teams". BBC Sport. 20 October 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  48. ^ "Bale and Ramsey barracked over team GB after 4–1 win over Norway". Daily Mail. London. 13 November 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  49. ^ a b Edwards, Luke (24 November 2011). "David Beckham on Stuart Pearce's list for London 2012 Olympics football team selection". Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  50. ^ "Team GB selection policy". The FA. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  51. ^ "Ryan Giggs and David Beckham keen to play for Olympic football team". The Press Association. London: The Guardian. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  52. ^ "Gareth Bale and Craig Bellamy included in Olympics Team GB shortlist". Wales Online. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  53. ^ "David Beckham in provisional 35-man Team GB squad for London 2012". Press Association. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  54. ^ "Olympics Football: Wales' Neil Taylor reveals Team GB call-up". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  55. ^ "GB Olympic football teams to play in Manchester, London and Cardiff". http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/15674327. BBC Sport. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); External link in |work= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
  56. ^ "Team GB draw Uruguay, United Arab Emirates and Senegal for Olympics". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  57. ^ "London 2012: Stuart Pearce's Team GB to face Brazil in July friendly". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  58. ^ Daily Telegraph – David Beckham left out of Team GB football squad for London 2012 Olympics
  59. ^ a b c "Going for gold: Team GB Pearce reveals 18-man squad for London Olympics". Daily Mail. Retrieved 2 July 2012.
  60. ^ a b c "Will one of your club's stars be wearing it this summer? Team GB football kit unveiled". Daily Mail. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  61. ^ "Team GB Olympic kit launch – in pictures". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  62. ^ "Team GB 2012 Olympics Adidas Away Football Shirt". Football Shirt Culture. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  63. ^ "London 2012 Olympics: Ryan Giggs to captain Team GB football side". Daily Telegraph. Daily Telegraph. 8 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  64. ^ Stuart Pearce joins an illustrious list of GB managers When Saturday Comes 18–01–11. Accessed 20–01–11.
[edit]
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