Football in the Olympics & Why is it not as popular as the FIFA World Cup?
Here are a few probable reasons why the competition is not as loved by the fans as the World Cup
1. Under- 23 age restriction.
Olympic football is not popular mainly due to the Under-23 restriction that is imposed on teams. Many big football stars are unable to participate in the tournament due to this rule.
Fans would not really follow this competition as they are unfamiliar with the players in the tournament.
This age restriction was imposed to the men’s competition since 1992 whereas there is no age restriction to the women’s competition
In the current version of the competition that is the Tokyo Olympics 2021 which is the delayed version of Tokyo Olympics 2020 the age restriction is changed from 23 to 24.
A maximum of 3 players above the age limit are allowed to participate in the tournament.
2. Less number of teams in the Competition
The Gold Medal is contested by total of 16 teams whereas the World Cup is contested by 32.
The 16 teams reach the Olympics by playing various qualifiers but most continental confederations organize a special Under-23 qualifying tournament, although the European qualifiers are drawn from the finalists of the UEFA Under-21 Championship.
For the Tokyo Olympics 16 teams from Asia(4), Europe(4), Africa(3), South America(2), North America(2) and Oceania(1) (OFC-Oceanic Football Confederation) Have qualified.
These 16 teams will now play a round-robin group stage followed by a knockout stage. Teams are placed into groups of 4 teams, with each team playing each other team in its group once. Teams earn 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss. The top two teams in each group (as well as the top two third-place finishers, in the women’s tournament) advance to the knockout rounds. The knockout rounds are a single-elimination tournament consisting of quarterfinals, semifinals, and the gold and bronze medal matches.
3. Clubs imposing restrictions on players.
U-23 star players such as Vinicius jr, Rodrygo, Eder Militao of Real Madrid and Gabriel jesus, Renan Lodi of Manchester City will not be allowed to join the Brazilian and the Spanish National sides by their respective clubs as the clubs want them to prepare for the upcoming domestic seasons.
Egypt U23s boss Shawky Gharib has had his request of having Superstar forward Mohamed Salah in the side for Olympics denied by Liverpool Football Club keeping in mind future competitions.
A Fifa spokesperson was later quoted saying “Clubs aren’t obliged to send players to Olympics”. This takes the luster out of the Competition.
Even though Olympics are a great stage for the young talent of these countries to showcase there skills at one the biggest sporting events and win an Olympic medal.
But because of the reasons mentioned above and due to so many different events happening simultaneously football dose not receive the kind of audience it used to in the EURO’s and the World Cup.
By Aditya Chitnis
