Football at the 1956 Summer Olympics

The 1956 Olympic Games football tournament with just 11 competing nations suffered from cancellations. It was an undistinguished tournament that featured mis-matches and walkovers.

Background

Following 5 withdrawals, the tournament featured three Eastern bloc teams and four from Asia in a tournament that matched professionals against the amateurs required in Olympics. The other sides included in the draw were from the United States, Germany (West and East united), Great Britain (rather than as separate nations as in FIFA football) and the hosts Australia, featuring in their very first Olympic football tournament.

The ability to develop an "amateur" side around 2 or 3 long-term internationals could only be achieved by use of the tendency of Eastern bloc sides to provide state-funding for their athletes. This compared most favourably with the Australians who did not pay their footballers during the tournament; player income was supported by community fund-raising. [http://www.ozfootball.net/museum/ronlord.html] In Melbourne's The Age newspaper, Alex Barr wrote:

:"The original [Australian] squad was not the best and four weeks of intensive training did nothing to improve the standard. Australian soccer has lost a wonderful chance to gain world prominence and the game has suffered a body blow."

quads

* goal|60
Milanov goal|42
goals2 =
stadium = Melbourne
Referee: Nikolai Latychev (USSR)
Attendance: 25.000

Goal medal match

footballbox
date = December 8, 1956
12:00
team1 = fb-rt|URS
score = 1–0
report = [http://www.fifa.com/tournaments/archive/tournament=512/edition=197067/matches/match=32408/report.html Report]
team2 = fb|YUG
goals1 = Ilyin goal|48
goals2 =
stadium = Melbourne
Referee: R. Wright (AUS)
Attendance: 102.000

Medalists

References

* [http://www.rsssf.com/tableso/ol1956f.html RSSSF Archive]