At the 1900 Summer Olympics, an association football tournament was contested for the first time. Only two matches were held between the three club sides, and no medals were awarded.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | France |
| Dates | 20–23 September 1900 |
| Teams | 3 |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Upton Park FC (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Club Français |
| Third place |  Université de Bruxelles |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 2 |
| Goals scored | 12 (6 per match) |
← 1896 1904 → | |
France's representatives were determined by the USFSA, which elected the Parisian champion Club Français.[1] For Belgium, after Racing Club de Bruxelles declined to participate, a student selection with players from the Université libre de Bruxelles was sent by the Federation.[2][3] The team was reinforced with a few non-students. On the other hand, English club Upton Park F.C. represented Great Britain.[1][3]
The International Olympic Committee credits Great Britain, France and a "Mixed Team" with gold, silver and bronze medals, respectively, as part of its attempt to reconcile early Olympic Games with the modern award scheme.[4] The Belgian team included one British and one Dutch player.
The football matches were held at the Vélodrome de Vincennes in Paris.[1]
Competition schedule
editOriginally there were four matches scheduled for the 1900 Olympics, all including a French team. As Switzerland and Germany eventually did not send a team, the match involving France and England was moved forward to 20 September.[1]
16 September 1900 France vs 
Switzerland
23 September 1900 France vs Belgium
30 September 1900 France vs 
Germany
7 October 1900 France vs 
England
The match final schedule of the tournament.[5]
| M | Match |
| Thu 20 | Fri 21 | Sat 22 | Sun 23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| M1 | M2 |
Venue
edit
Squads
editMatches
editIn the first game, the British squad had little difficulty defeating the Club Français (wearing the USFSA uniform). Upton Park led 2–0 after the first half, getting two more goals in the second to win 4–0. Gaston Peltier scored in the first minute to give the USFSA XI an early lead, but Université de Bruxelles scored twice to take a 2–1 first half lead. The French scored five goals in the second half, however, to take the match 6–2.[6]
| Club Français | 0–4 | Upton Park FC |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Nicholas  Turner 5'Zealley 7' |
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Final ranking
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upton Park FC
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 2 |
| 2 | Club Français
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Université de Bruxelles
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 0 |
Medal summary
editMedal table
edit
| Position | Country | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Great Britain (GBR) |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 |  France (FRA) |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 |  Belgium (BEL) |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Medalists
editSee also
editReferences
edit
- ^ a b c d e f Games of the II. Olympiad - Football Tournament by Søren Elbech and Karel Stokkermans on the RSSSF
- ^ Great Britain's first home Olympic football adventure by Jon Carter, ESPN, 26 June 2012
- ^ a b c d Before the World Cup: Who were football’s earliest world champions? by Paul Brown on Medium Sports, 6 June 2018
- ^ "Paris 1900 Football Men Results". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
- ^ "Games of the II. Olympiad Football Tournament". RSSSF.com. The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 12 May 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
- ^ "Olympedia – Football, Men – Match #2". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 11 January 2024.