 | |||
| Association | The FA | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Captain | Steph Houghton Sophie Ingle Kim Little (2020)[1] | ||
| Mostcaps | Kim Little (9) Jill Scott (9) | ||
| Top scorer | Ellen White (6) | ||
| FIFA code | GBR | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Great Britain 0–0Sweden (Middlesbrough,United Kingdom; 20 July 2012) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Great Britain 3–0Cameroon (Cardiff,United Kingdom; 28 July 2012) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
Great Britain 3–4Australia  (Kashima,Japan; 30 July 2021) | |||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | 2 (first in2012) | ||
| Best result | Quarter-finals (2012,2020) | ||
TheGreat Britain women's Olympic football team (also known asTeam GB; or occasionallyGreat Britain and Northern Ireland) represent theUnited Kingdom in thewomen's football tournament at theOlympic Games. Normally, no team represents the whole of the United Kingdom in women's football, as separate teams representEngland,Scotland,Wales andNorthern Ireland.[2]
Women's football was introduced to the Olympic Games in1996, but Great Britain did not enter the football events at this time.[3] This changed when the2012 Summer Olympics were hosted byLondon, as an Olympic football team was created to take the automatic qualifying place of the host nation. Following an agreement between theBritish Olympic Association (BOA) andThe Football Association (FA), which operates the England team, the FA selected the British team, which could include players from across the United Kingdom.[4] The team reached the quarter-finals, losing toCanada.[5]
FIFA stated that they would not allow entry of a British team in future Olympics unless all four Home Nations agreed. No agreement was reached ahead of the2016 Summer Olympics, but a deal was formed for the2020 tournament.[6][7] Great Britain qualified for that tournament, as England secured one of the top three places among European teams at the2019 World Cup.[8] For the2024 tournament, Great Britain did not qualify, as England were unable to secure qualification via the2023–24 Nations League.[9]
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Whenthe Football Association (FA) was formed in 1863, its geographical remit was not clear: there was no specification of whether it covered just England, the entire UK or even the entire world. The question was answered when theScottish Football Association (SFA) was founded in 1873. Football associations forWales andIreland (later Northern Ireland) were founded in 1876 and 1880 respectively. Football therefore developed with separate national teams representing each of thecountries of the United Kingdom and no 'United Kingdom football association' was ever formed. AGreat Britain Olympic football team was selected by the FA for men's Olympic football between 1908 and 1972, for amateur players, but the UK had stopped entering teams into theOlympic football tournament by the time of the first women's football competition in1996 due to The FA abolishing the distinction between amateurism and professionalism in 1972.
Due to London'ssuccessful bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, the United Kingdom had the right to enter a team in the football tournament as host nation.[10] TheBritish Olympic Association stated it would enter a football team,[11] but theScottish Football Association (SFA) refused even to attend meetings at which theHome Nations were to discuss the possibility[12] and theFootball Association of Wales withdrew from the negotiations.[13] In October 2007 theIrish Football Association (the association for Northern Ireland) also announced that they would not take part in a unified team, leavingthe Football Association (England) as the only association willing to take part. It was reported that the other associations feared the loss of their privileged voting position within theInternational Football Association Board.[14][15]
As England had reached the quarter-finals of the2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, Great Britain had qualified for the2008 Summer Olympics. They were unable to participate in the Games as the national football associations failed to reach an agreement,[16][17] and they were replaced in the tournament bySweden. Nevertheless, the BOA decided that a women's team would compete in London 2012.
Following an initial announcement in May 2009 of a compromise, in which the FA would select a team of only English players to compete at London,[18] an FA statement in June 2011 claimed that after discussions with all British football associations and the BOA that they would enter a team selected from across the United Kingdom.[19] That announcement angered the other British football associations, who claimed not to have been consulted on the decision, but the SFA admitted that it would have no grounds for preventing Scottish players from competing in the team.[20] In November 2011 theProfessional Footballers' Association warned the SFA, FAW and IFA against trying to "intimidate" players into not taking part.[21]
In June 2011Arsenal Ladies strikerJulie Fleeting, Scotland's record goalscorer, ruled herself out of contention. She concurred with the opinion of her fatherJim—the SFA's director of football development—that participation may "jeopardise" the Scottish national team.[22] Fleeting's teammate for club and countryKim Little took the opposite view: "I don't see why anyone would want to stop a player from playing at a massive tournament like the Olympics, it's the biggest sporting event ever. If I get the opportunity I'll grab it with both hands – I would definitely play."[14] Fellow ScotsRachel Corsie andJen Beattie also expressed interest,[23] as well asEverton's Welsh wingerGwennan Harries.[24]
In October 2011,England managerHope Powell was appointed head coach of the women's team.[25] Powell began the process of selecting the squad by writing to all the players whom she wanted to consider for the team, offering them the opportunity to exclude themselves from consideration for the squad. It was confirmed in January 2012 that none of the players who had been contacted had asked to withdraw.[26] In June 2012The Belfast Telegraph reported that threeNorthern Ireland players had been selected in the final squad.[27] One of the players concerned,Sunderland'sSarah McFadden, dismissed the report: "I haven't received anything about being in final squad... Wish it was true but unfortunately not."[28]
Great Britain were placed in Group E for the Olympic tournament prior to the draw, with their first two matches due to be played at theMillennium Stadium inCardiff.[29] The draw was held on 24 April 2012 and addedNew Zealand,Cameroon andBrazil to Great Britain's group.[30] Two days after the draw, it was announced that Great Britain's single warm-up game prior to the start of the tournament would be againstSweden at theRiverside Stadium,Middlesbrough on 20 July.[31]
The first ever game for the Great Britain women's Olympic football team was a behind closed doors training match win againstSouth Africa, part of the preparations for the 2012 Summer Olympics. It took place in Birmingham, England on 15 July 2012.[32] The first official game was a goalless draw against Sweden on 20 July.
v
South Africa| 15 July 2012Training match | Great Britain | 3–1 | South Africa | Birmingham,England |
| Report | Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) | |||
| Note: Unofficial match, no caps awarded | ||||
v Sweden| 20 July 2012Friendly | Great Britain | 0–0 | Sweden | Middlesbrough,England |
| 16:00BST (UTC+1) | Report | Stadium:Riverside Stadium Referee:Florence Guillemin (France) |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Great Britain | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 9 | Qualified for the quarter-finals |
| 2 |  Brazil | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 6 | |
| 3 |  New Zealand | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| 4 | Cameroon | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 11 | −10 | 0 |
v New Zealand| 25 July 2012Group stage | Great Britain | 1–0 | New Zealand | Cardiff,Wales |
| 16:00BST (UTC+1) | Houghton 64' | Report | Stadium:Millennium Stadium Attendance: 24,445[33] Referee:Kari Seitz (United States) |
v Cameroon| 28 July 2012Group stage | Great Britain | 3–0 | Cameroon | Cardiff,Wales |
| 17:15BST (UTC+1) | Stoney 18' J. Scott 23'Houghton 82' | Report | Stadium:Millennium Stadium Attendance: 31,141[34] Referee:Hong Eun-ah (South Korea) |
v Brazil| 31 July 2012Group stage | Great Britain | 1–0 | Brazil | London,England |
| 19:45BST (UTC+1) | Houghton 2' | Report | Stadium:Wembley Stadium Attendance: 70,584[35] Referee:Carol Anne Chenard (Canada) |
v
Canada| 3 August 2012Quarter-final | Great Britain | 0–2 | Canada | Coventry,England |
| 19:30BST (UTC+1) | Report | Filigno 12' Sinclair 26' | Stadium:City of Coventry Stadium Attendance: 28,828[36] Referee:Sachiko Yamagishi (Japan) |
After the team was eliminated from the 2012 Olympics, head coachHope Powell expressed her wish that a team would be entered in future Olympic tournaments.[37] In June 2013, while giving evidence to theHouse of Lords' Olympic and Paralympic Legacy Committee, the Football Association indicated that they would be prepared to run women's teams at future Olympic tournaments subject to one of the home nations meeting the qualification criteria (i.e. being one of the top three European nations at the Women's World Cup).[38] However, following strong objections from theScottish,Welsh andNorthern Irish football associations, and a commitment fromFIFA that they would not allow entry of a British team unless all four Home Nations agreed, the Football Association announced on 30 March 2015 that they would not seek entry into the2016 Summer Olympics tournament.[6] The third-place finishEngland secured at the2015 FIFA Women's World Cup would have qualified Great Britain for the Olympics.[39]
In June 2015, British Olympic Association chief Bill Sweeney announced a campaign to get the team reinstated for the2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[40] In 2018,Baroness Campbell, the FA's Head of Women's Football, indicated that there was a willingness on the part of the other three Home Nations to allow the Football Association the opportunity to run a football team for the 2020 Olympics.[41] An agreement was reached between the four associations ahead of the2020 Summer Olympics that the highest ranked of the four home nations would be nominated to compete for the Olympic place. As a consequence, although bothEngland andScotland qualified for the2019 World Cup (which is used by UEFA as the qualifying tournament for the Summer Olympics), only England were eligible to compete for an Olympic qualifying place.[7] By reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup, England secured one of the three qualifying places allocated to UEFA.[42][8]
Having originally announced that England managerPhil Neville would be appointed manager of Team GB Women for the 2020 Summer Olympics following England's successfulde facto qualification performance at the 2019 World Cup,[43] the FA announced in March 2021 thatHege Riise, who had been appointed caretaker manager of England following Neville's premature departure earlier in the year,[44] would be taking over the role.[45]
Due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, the games were postponed to the summer of 2021. However, their official name remained 2020 Summer Olympics.[46] Great Britain were placed in pot two for the group stage draw based on the FIFA seeding for England who qualified on behalf of Great Britain.[47] The team was drawn into Group E with host nation Japan, Canada and Chile.[48] They had originally arranged one friendly inStoke againstZambia who were preparing to make their Olympic debut.[49] However, COVID-19 travel restrictions prevented them from entering the country and they were forced to withdraw.[50] While in Japan, Great Britain eventually managed to play a closed-doors training match a week prior to their opening group game, reportedly beatingNew Zealand 3–0 at theTodoroki Athletics Stadium on 14 July.[51]
v
Zambia| 1 July 2021Friendly | Great Britain | C–C | Zambia | Stoke-on-Trent,England |
| 19:15BST (UTC+1) | Stadium:Stoke City Ground | |||
| Note: Zambia withdrew as the United Kingdom's COVID-19 travel restrictions prevented them from entering the country.[50] | ||||
v New Zealand| 14 July 2021Training match | Great Britain | 3–0 | New Zealand | Tokyo,Japan |
| Report | Stadium:Todoroki Athletics Stadium Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) | |||
| Note: Unofficial match, no caps awarded | ||||
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Great Britain | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Canada | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 5 | |
| 3 |  Japan(H) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Chile | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0 |
v Chile| 21 July 2021Group stage | Great Britain | 2–0 | Chile | Sapporo,Japan |
| 16:30JST (UTC+9) | White 18',73' | Report | Stadium:Sapporo Dome Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) Referee:Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda) |
v Great Britain| 24 July 2021Group stage | Japan | 0–1 | Great Britain | Sapporo,Japan |
| 19:30JST (UTC+9) | Report | White 74' | Stadium:Sapporo Dome Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) Referee:Anastasia Pustovoitova (Russia) |
v Great Britain| 27 July 2021Group stage | Canada | 1–1 | Great Britain | Kashima,Japan |
| 20:00JST (UTC+9) | Leon 55' | Report | Price 85' (o.g.) | Stadium:Kashima Stadium Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) Referee:Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine) |
v Australia| 30 July 2021Quarter-final | Great Britain | 3–4 (a.e.t.) | Australia | Kashima,Japan |
| 18:00JST (UTC+9) | White 57',66',115' | Report | Stadium:Kashima Stadium Attendance: 0(behind closed doors) Referee:Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda) |
As with 2020,England (as thehighest rankedhome nation) were made responsible for Great Britain's qualification for the Olympics. Unlike 2020, European qualification was not based on theWorld Cup (in which England finished runners-up) but on the inaugural edition of theNations League.[52][53] England and Scotland were drawn in the same Nations League group, which created a potential conflict of interest for the Scottish players.[54] On 20 September 2023, England managerSarina Wiegman was announced as manager of Team GB assuming qualification for the tournament.[55] Team GB were eliminated from qualifying contention after England finished as runners-up to theNetherlands ongoal difference in the Nations League group.[9]
The IOC governing body prohibits the use of any crests attributed to specific football associations or federations as they are seen to represent separate commercial interests rather than the nations. Where teams would normally use association crests they instead use the emblems of their respective national Olympic associations.[56] Great Britain women's Olympic football team wears the logo ofTeam GB. The crest features the head of a lion, a traditional animal inBritish heraldry that forms part of theRoyal coat of arms. The lion's blue and red mane is stylised to create aUnion Jack. Beneath the lion is the Team GB wordmark which was developed in 1996 as a way of better unifying British athletes from all sports under one clearly defined sporting brand.[57] Below the wordmark are theOlympic rings.
Both the 2012 and 2020 kits were supplied byAdidas, the licensed sportswear partners of Team GB since 1984. They are part of the larger collection of uniforms designed for British athletes across all sports for each individual Olympics.[58]Stella McCartney designed the 2012 range.[59] Adidas' in-house design team created the 2020 kits.[60]
Head coach:
Hege Riise
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1GK |  Ellie Roebuck | (1999-09-23)23 September 1999 (aged 21) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 13 | 1GK | Carly Telford | (1987-07-07)7 July 1987 (aged 34) | 0 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
| 22 | 1GK | Sandy MacIver | (1998-06-18)18 June 1998 (aged 23) | 0 | 0 | Everton | ||
| 2 | 2DF | Lucy Bronze | (1991-10-28)28 October 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 3 | 2DF | Demi Stokes | (1991-12-12)12 December 1991 (aged 29) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 5 | 2DF | Steph Houghton(co-captain) | (1988-04-23)23 April 1988 (aged 33) | 8 | 3 | Manchester City | ||
| 12 | 2DF | Rachel Daly | (1991-12-06)6 December 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 |  Houston Dash | ||
| 14 | 2DF | Millie Bright | (1993-08-21)21 August 1993 (aged 27) | 3 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
| 16 | 2DF | Leah Williamson | (1997-03-29)29 March 1997 (aged 24) | 3 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
| 21 | 2DF | Lotte Wubben-Moy | (1999-01-11)11 January 1999 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
| 4 | 3MF | Keira Walsh | (1997-04-08)8 April 1997 (aged 24) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 6 | 3MF |  Sophie Ingle(co-captain) | (1991-09-02)2 September 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
| 8 | 3MF |  Kim Little(co-captain) | (1990-06-29)29 June 1990 (aged 31) | 9 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
| 11 | 3MF | Caroline Weir | (1995-06-20)20 June 1995 (aged 26) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 18 | 3MF | Jill Scott | (1987-02-02)2 February 1987 (aged 34) | 9 | 1 | Manchester City | ||
| 9 | 4FW | Ellen White | (1989-05-09)9 May 1989 (aged 32) | 8 | 6 | Manchester City | ||
| 7 | 4FW | Nikita Parris | (1994-03-10)10 March 1994 (aged 27) | 4 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
| 10 | 4FW | Fran Kirby | (1993-06-29)29 June 1993 (aged 28) | 2 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
| 15 | 4FW | Lauren Hemp | (2000-08-07)7 August 2000 (aged 20) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 17 | 4FW | Georgia Stanway | (1999-01-03)3 January 1999 (aged 22) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
| 19 | 4FW | Niamh Charles | (1999-06-21)21 June 1999 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
| 20 | 4FW | Ella Toone | (1999-09-02)2 September 1999 (aged 21) | 1 | 0 | Manchester United | ||
Statistics correct as of match played 30 July 2021
| Image | Manager | Olympic games | P | W | D | L | Win % | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | Hope Powell | 2012 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 060.00 | London 2012 – Quarter-finals |
.jpg) | Hege Riise | 2020 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 050.00 | Tokyo 2020 – Quarter-finals |
| # | Name | Olympic games | Caps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kim Little | 2012, 2020 | 9 | 0 |
| Jill Scott | 2012, 2020 | 9 | 1 | |
| 3 | Steph Houghton | 2012, 2020 | 8 | 3 |
| Ellen White | 2012, 2020 | 8 | 6 | |
| 5 | Eniola Aluko | 2012 | 5 | 0 |
| Anita Asante | 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| Karen Bardsley | 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| Karen Carney | 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| Alex Scott | 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| Casey Stoney | 2012 | 5 | 1 | |
| Fara Williams | 2012 | 5 | 0 | |
| Rachel Yankey | 2012 | 5 | 0 |
Bold names denote a player still playing or available for selection.
| # | Name | Olympic games | Caps | Goals | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ellen White (list) | 2012, 2020 | 8 | 6 | 0.75 |
| 2 | Steph Houghton | 2012, 2020 | 8 | 3 | 0.38 |
| 3 | Casey Stoney | 2012 | 5 | 1 | 0.2 |
| Jill Scott | 2012, 2020 | 9 | 1 | 0.11 |
Bold names denote a player still playing or available for selection.
Gold medalists
Silver medalists
Bronze medalists
| Summer Olympics | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Host | Round | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Squad |
| 1996 | United States | Did not enter | |||||||
| 2000 | Australia | ||||||||
| 2004 |  Greece | ||||||||
| 2008 |  China | ||||||||
| 2012 | United Kingdom | Quarter-finals | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | Squad |
| 2016 | Brazil | Did not enter | |||||||
| 2020 | Japan | Quarter-finals | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | Squad |
| 2024 |  France | Did not qualify | |||||||
| Total | Quarter-finals | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 7 | — | |
Great Britain squads | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
