Football

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Football

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About

Key Facts
Rules
30-Second Expert

Aim of the game

Two teams of 11 players must try to put the ball in their opponent’s goal, while defending their own. Only one player on each team, the goalkeeper, may touch the ball with their hands and arms

Why should you watch this?

To see the stars of tomorrow: previous Olympic Games have featured Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Fabio Cannavaro and Neymar

Venues

Amazônia Arena , Corinthians Arena , Fonte Nova Arena , Mané Garrincha Stadium , Maracanã , Mineirão , Olympic Stadium

International Federation

FIFA

Olympic debut

Paris 1900

Free-kick

Depending on the offence, can be ‘direct’ (can score directly from free-kick) or ‘indirect’ (ball must touch another player before a goal can be scored)
Offside

If a player is ahead of the ball and nearer to the opposition’s goal line than the second-to-last opponent when the ball is played by a teammate, they are in an offside position – but the referee may judge that the player is not 'interfering with play'
Penalty shoot-out

If a knock-out match finishes tied after 30 minutes of extra time, each team takes five penalty kicks. If still level, they take ‘sudden-death’ penalties

Impress your friends

In a form of football played in ancient China, leather balls were filled with feathers and hair
Football became so violent in medieval England – where rival towns would play each other in the streets, using a pig's bladder – that it was banned for over 300 years
The game was formalised in English schools in the 19th century, when football and rugby were split into distinct sports
The women's competition was first included in the Olympic programme at the Atlanta 1996 Games
Hungary’s legendary 1950s team known as the ‘Magical Magyars’ emerged at the Helsinki 1952 Olympic Games, when the iconic Ferenc Puskás led them to gold
Nigeria were fairy-tale champions at Atlanta 1996, coming back from 3-1 down to beat Brazil in the semi-finals, then overturning a 2-1 deficit against Argentina in the final
Despite losing star striker Abby Wambach to injury just before Beijing 2008, the USA women pulled together to win a third Olympic title, beating Brazil 1-0 in extra-time
European teams won 17 of the 20 men’s competitions up to 1992, but have not won since
The men's tournament has been won six times by teams from the American continent: Canada, Uruguay (twice), Argentina (twice) and Mexico
An African team is yet to win the FIFA World Cup, but the continent has produced two men’s Olympic champions – Nigeria in 1996 and Cameroon in 2000
USA has dominated the five women's Olympic tournaments to date, winning gold four times and finishing second to Norway at Sydney 2000
Brazil's Cristiane is the leading goal-scorer in the women's Olympic competition with 12 – five at Athens 2004, five at Beijing 2008 and two at London 2012
The Olympic tournament is the only major international football competition Brazil’s men have yet to win
Uruguay's team is sometimes known as La Celeste Olímpica in reference to their Olympic triumphs in 1924 and 1928
At the Paris 1900 Games, Great Britain was represented by Upton Park FC and the amateur team from east London won the gold medal

Tournament

Teams earn three points for a win, one for a draw, none for a defeat.

The men’s tournament has an age limit of 23, but each squad is allowed three ‘over-age’ players (the women’s tournament has no age restrictions).

Duration

Matches consist of two halves of 45 minutes, plus time added by the referee for stoppages.

Players

Goalkeeper: the last line of defence, usually tall and agile, they are allowed to use their hands inside the penalty area.

Defender: tasked with stopping the opposition from scoring, must be strong tacklers and have good positional sense. Centre-backs are normally tall and good at heading, while full-backs/wing-backs are often lighter and more attack-minded.

Midfielder: these positions can include covering midfielders (who protect the defence), playmakers (who launch attacks from deep), dynamic box-to-box players, wingers and attacking midfielders.

Forward: come in all styles and sizes – big and strong, small and fast – scoring goals is their job.

Officials

Referee: ensures the game is played according to the laws, using a whistle to stop and start play. Can show yellow (caution) or red (dismissal) cards to players who break the rules.

Assistant Referee: known as ‘linesmen’ they help the referee enforce the rules, particularly offside, raising their flag to signal an offence.