Association | The FA | ||
---|---|---|---|
Captain | Steph Houghton Sophie Ingle Kim Little (2020) [1] | ||
Most caps | Kim Little (9) Jill Scott (9) | ||
Top scorer | Ellen White (6) | ||
FIFA code | GBR | ||
| |||
First international | |||
Great Britain 0–0 Sweden (Middlesbrough, United Kingdom; 20 July 2012) | |||
Biggest win | |||
Great Britain 3–0 Cameroon (Cardiff, United Kingdom; 28 July 2012) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
Great Britain 0–2 Canada (Coventry, United Kingdom; 3 August 2012) | |||
Olympic Games | |||
Appearances | 2 (first in 2012 ) | ||
Best result | Quarter-finals (2012, 2020) |
The Great Britain women's Olympic football team (also known as Team GB; or occasionally Great Britain and Northern Ireland) represent the United Kingdom in the women's football tournament at the Olympic Games. Normally, no team represents the whole of the United Kingdom in women's football, as separate teams represent England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. [2]
Women's football was introduced to the Olympic Games in 1996, but Great Britain did not enter the football events at this time. [3] This changed when the 2012 Summer Olympics were hosted by London, as an Olympic football team was created to take the automatic qualifying place of the host nation. Following an agreement between the British Olympic Association (BOA) and The 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 to Canada. [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 the 2016 Summer Olympics, but a deal was formed for the 2020 tournament. [6] [7] Great Britain qualified for that tournament, as England secured one of the top three places among European teams at the 2019 World Cup. [8] For the 2024 tournament, Great Britain did not qualify, as England were unable to secure qualification via the 2023–24 Nations League. [9]
When the 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 the Scottish Football Association (SFA) was founded in 1873. Football associations for Wales and Ireland (later Northern Ireland) were founded in 1876 and 1880 respectively. Football therefore developed with separate national teams representing each of the countries of the United Kingdom and no 'United Kingdom football association' was ever formed. A Great 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 the Olympic football tournament by the time of the first women's football competition in 1996 due to The FA abolishing the distinction between amateurism and professionalism in 1972.
Due to London's successful bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, the United Kingdom had the right to enter a team in the football tournament as host nation. [10] The British Olympic Association stated it would enter a football team, [11] but the Scottish Football Association (SFA) refused even to attend meetings at which the Home Nations were to discuss the possibility [12] and the Football Association of Wales withdrew from the negotiations. [13] In October 2007 the Irish Football Association (the association for Northern Ireland) also announced that they would not take part in a unified team, leaving the 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 the International Football Association Board. [14] [15]
As England had reached the quarter-finals of the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, Great Britain had qualified for the 2008 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 by Sweden. 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 the Professional Footballers' Association warned the SFA, FAW and IFA against trying to "intimidate" players into not taking part. [21]
In June 2011 Arsenal Ladies striker Julie Fleeting, Scotland's record goalscorer, ruled herself out of contention. She concurred with the opinion of her father Jim—the SFA's director of football development—that participation may "jeopardise" the Scottish national team. [22] Fleeting's teammate for club and country Kim 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 Scots Rachel Corsie and Jen Beattie also expressed interest, [23] as well as Everton's Welsh winger Gwennan Harries. [24]
In October 2011, England manager Hope 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 2012 The Belfast Telegraph reported that three Northern Ireland players had been selected in the final squad. [27] One of the players concerned, Sunderland's Sarah 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 the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. [29] The draw was held on 24 April 2012 and added New Zealand, Cameroon and Brazil 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 against Sweden at the Riverside 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 against South 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.
15 July 2012Training match | Great Britain | 3–1 | South Africa | Birmingham, England |
Report | Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors) | |||
Note: Unofficial match, no caps awarded |
20 July 2012Friendly | Great Britain | 0–0 | Sweden | Middlesbrough, England |
16:00 BST (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 |
25 July 2012 Group stage | Great Britain | 1–0 | New Zealand | Cardiff, Wales |
16:00 BST (UTC+1) | Houghton 64' | Report | Stadium: Millennium Stadium Attendance: 24,445 [33] Referee: Kari Seitz (United States) |
28 July 2012 Group stage | Great Britain | 3–0 | Cameroon | Cardiff, Wales |
17:15 BST (UTC+1) | Stoney 18' J. Scott 23' Houghton 82' | Report | Stadium: Millennium Stadium Attendance: 31,141 [34] Referee: Hong Eun-ah (South Korea) |
31 July 2012 Group stage | Great Britain | 1–0 | Brazil | London, England |
19:45 BST (UTC+1) | Houghton 2' | Report | Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 70,584 [35] Referee: Carol Anne Chenard (Canada) |
3 August 2012 Quarter-final | Great Britain | 0–2 | Canada | Coventry, England |
19:30 BST (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 coach Hope Powell expressed her wish that a team would be entered in future Olympic tournaments. [37] In June 2013, while giving evidence to the House 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 the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish football associations, and a commitment from FIFA 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 the 2016 Summer Olympics tournament. [6] The third-place finish England secured at the 2015 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 the 2020 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 the 2020 Summer Olympics that the highest ranked of the four home nations would be nominated to compete for the Olympic place. As a consequence, although both England and Scotland qualified for the 2019 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 manager Phil Neville would be appointed manager of Team GB Women for the 2020 Summer Olympics following England's successful de facto qualification performance at the 2019 World Cup, [43] the FA announced in March 2021 that Hege 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 the COVID-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 in Stoke against Zambia 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 beating New Zealand 3–0 at the Todoroki Athletics Stadium on 14 July. [51]
1 July 2021Friendly | Great Britain | C–C | Zambia | Stoke-on-Trent, England |
19:15 BST (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] |
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 to knockout 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 |
21 July 2021 Group stage | Great Britain | 2–0 | Chile | Sapporo, Japan |
16:30 JST (UTC+9) | White 18', 73' | Report | Stadium: Sapporo Dome Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors) Referee: Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda) |
24 July 2021 Group stage | Japan | 0–1 | Great Britain | Sapporo, Japan |
19:30 JST (UTC+9) | Report | White 74' | Stadium: Sapporo Dome Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors) Referee: Anastasia Pustovoitova (Russia) |
27 July 2021 Group stage | Canada | 1–1 | Great Britain | Kashima, Japan |
20:00 JST (UTC+9) | Leon 55' | Report | Price 85' (o.g.) | Stadium: Kashima Stadium Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors) Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine) |
30 July 2021 Quarter-final | Great Britain | 3–4 (a.e.t.) | Australia | Kashima, Japan |
18:00 JST (UTC+9) | White 57', 66', 115' | Report | Stadium: Kashima Stadium Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors) Referee: Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda) |
As with 2020, England (as the highest ranked home nation) were made responsible for Great Britain's qualification for the Olympics. Unlike 2020, European qualification was not based on the World Cup (in which England finished runners-up) but on the inaugural edition of the Nations 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 manager Sarina 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 the Netherlands on goal 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 of Team GB. The crest features the head of a lion, a traditional animal in British heraldry that forms part of the Royal coat of arms. The lion's blue and red mane is stylised to create a Union 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 the Olympic rings.
Both the 2012 and 2020 kits were supplied by Adidas, 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]
London 2012
| Tokyo 2020
|
Head coach: Hege Riise
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | GK | Ellie Roebuck | 23 September 1999 (aged 21) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
13 | GK | Carly Telford | 7 July 1987 (aged 34) | 0 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
22 | GK | Sandy MacIver [a] | 18 June 1998 (aged 23) | 0 | 0 | Everton | ||
2 | DF | Lucy Bronze | 28 October 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
3 | DF | Demi Stokes | 12 December 1991 (aged 29) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
5 | DF | Steph Houghton (co-captain) | 23 April 1988 (aged 33) | 8 | 3 | Manchester City | ||
12 | DF | Rachel Daly | 6 December 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 | Houston Dash | ||
14 | DF | Millie Bright | 21 August 1993 (aged 27) | 3 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
16 | DF | Leah Williamson | 29 March 1997 (aged 24) | 3 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
21 | DF | Lotte Wubben-Moy | 11 January 1999 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
4 | MF | Keira Walsh | 8 April 1997 (aged 24) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
6 | MF | Sophie Ingle (co-captain) | 2 September 1991 (aged 29) | 4 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
8 | MF | Kim Little (co-captain) | 29 June 1990 (aged 31) | 9 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
11 | MF | Caroline Weir | 20 June 1995 (aged 26) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
18 | MF | Jill Scott | 2 February 1987 (aged 34) | 9 | 1 | Manchester City | ||
9 | FW | Ellen White | 9 May 1989 (aged 32) | 8 | 6 | Manchester City | ||
7 | FW | Nikita Parris | 10 March 1994 (aged 27) | 4 | 0 | Arsenal | ||
10 | FW | Fran Kirby | 29 June 1993 (aged 28) | 2 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
15 | FW | Lauren Hemp | 7 August 2000 (aged 20) | 3 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
17 | FW | Georgia Stanway | 3 January 1999 (aged 22) | 4 | 0 | Manchester City | ||
19 | FW | Niamh Charles | 21 June 1999 (aged 22) | 0 | 0 | Chelsea | ||
20 | FW | Ella Toone | 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 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hope Powell | 2012 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 60.00 | London 2012 – Quarter-finals | |
Hege Riise | 2020 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50.00 | 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 | — |
Association football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games as a men's competition sport, except 1896 and 1932. Women's football was added to the official program at the Atlanta 1996 Games.
Football is the most popular sport in the United Kingdom. Football is organised on a separate basis in each of the four constituent countries, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that make up the United Kingdom (UK), with each having a national football association responsible for the overall management of football within their respective country. There is no United Kingdom national football team. Football has been the most popular sport in the UK since the 1860s. Rugby union, rugby league and cricket are other popular sports.
The United Kingdom national football team are a football team that represents the United Kingdom. Despite football being the most popular sport in the country, the team has not played since 1965, as separate teams represent each home nation in all major international football tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship, as well as various friendlies. It is the home nations which are FIFA affiliated and not the United Kingdom as a whole.
The England women's national football team, nicknamed the Lionesses, has been governed by the Football Association (FA) since 1993, having been previously administered by the Women's Football Association (WFA). England played its first international match in November 1972 against Scotland. Although most national football teams represent a sovereign state, England is permitted by FIFA statutes, as a member of the United Kingdom's Home Nations, to maintain a national side that competes in all major tournaments, with the exception of the Women's Olympic Football Tournament.
The United Kingdom has been represented at every modern Olympic Games. By end of the 2024 Summer Olympics, it is third in the all-time Summer Olympic medal table by overall number of medals, and fourth in number of gold medals won. London hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1908, 1948 and 2012.
The Scotland women's national football team represents Scotland in international women's football competitions. Since 1998, the team has been governed by the Scottish Football Association (SFA). Scotland qualified for the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time in 2019, and for their first UEFA Women's Championship in 2017. As of June 2023, the team was placed 23rd in the FIFA Women's World Rankings. Although most national football teams represent a sovereign state, as a member of the United Kingdom's Home Nations, Scotland is permitted by FIFA statutes to maintain its own national side that competes in all major tournaments, with the exception of the Women's Olympic Football Tournament.
Eniola Aluko is a British football executive, football broadcaster and former professional player who played as a winger and striker. Aluko has been a regular broadcaster for live football on ITV, BT Sport, Amazon Prime and Fox Sports in the USA, including men's Premier League matches and Women's Super League since 2014. She was the first Sporting Director for Angel City FC of the American National women's soccer league and formerly held the position of Sporting Director at Aston Villa W.F.C. from January 2020 to June 2021.
The association football tournament at the 2012 Summer Olympics was held from 25 July to 11 August, and was the only sport to begin before the official opening day of the Olympic Games, two days before the opening ceremony. It was also the only sport to be held at multiple venues outside London, with Manchester, Glasgow, Newcastle, Coventry and Cardiff all hosting matches. The finals were played at Wembley Stadium. Associations affiliated with FIFA were invited to send their senior women's and men's under-23 national teams to participate; men's teams were allowed to augment their squads with three players over the age of 23. Five hundred and four football players competed for two sets of gold medals.
The Great Britain Olympic football team was the men's football team that represented the United Kingdom at the Summer Olympic Games. The team was organised by the Football Association as the men's footballing representative of the British Olympic Association. The team only competed in the Olympic Games. In other international football tournaments, the Home Nations of the United Kingdom are represented by their own national teams, a situation which pre-dated the establishment of a GB team.
Ellen Toni Convery is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. She is the record goalscorer for the England women's national team.
Stephanie Jayne Darby, commonly known as Steph Houghton, is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Known for her leadership and commitment, Houghton was widely regarded as one of the best centre-backs in the world during her career.
Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom, from 27 July to 12 August 2012 as the host nation and the team of selected athletes was officially known as Team GB. British athletes have competed at every Summer Olympic Games in the modern era, alongside Australia, France and Greece, though Great Britain is the only one to have won at least one gold medal at all of them. London was the first city to host the Summer Olympics on three different occasions, having previously done so in 1908 and 1948. It was joined by Paris in 2024 and will be joined by Los Angeles in 2028 in hosting the Olympic Games for a third time. Team GB, organised by BOA, sent a total of 541 athletes, 279 men and 262 women, to the Games, and won automatic qualification places in all 26 sports.
Sophie Louise Ingle is a Welsh footballer who plays for the Women's Super League club Chelsea and is a former captain of the Wales national team. She has previously represented Bristol Academy, Cardiff City, and Liverpool. Ingle plays as either a defender or defensive midfielder.
Caroline Elspeth Lillias Weir is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or forward for Spanish Liga F club Real Madrid CF and the Scotland national team.
The football tournament at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 21 July to 7 August 2021 in Japan.
The Great Britain national rugby sevens team is the women's Olympic representative team of Great Britain at the rugby sevens tournament at the Summer Olympic Games. The team played their first competitive match at the 2016 Summer Olympics after England finished in an Olympic qualifying place at the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series.
Sixteen teams qualified for the men's Olympic football tournament. In addition to host nation Japan, 15 men's national teams qualified from six separate continental confederations.
Great Britain, or in full Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the team of the British Olympic Association (BOA), which represents the United Kingdom, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Alexandra Elena MacIver is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Women's Super League club Manchester City and the Scotland national team. She has previously played for Everton. MacIver represented England once in 2021 before switching her international allegiance to Scotland in 2023.
The women's football tournament at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 21 July to 6 August 2021. Originally, it was to be held from 22 July to 7 August 2020, but the Summer Olympics were postponed to the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the official name of the games remains the 2020 Summer Olympics. It was the seventh edition of the women's Olympic football tournament. Together with the men's competition, the 2020 Summer Olympics football tournament was held at six stadiums in six cities in Japan. The final was hosted at the International Stadium in Yokohama. There were no player age restrictions for teams participating in the competition.