Great Britain women's Olympic football team
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.
| Association | The FA | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Captain | Steph Houghton Sophie Ingle Kim Little (2020) | ||
| Most caps | Kim Little 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) | ||
Women's football was introduced to the Olympic Games in 1996, but Great Britain did not enter the football events at this time. 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. The team reached the quarter-finals, losing to Canada.
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. Great Britain qualified for that tournament, as England secured one of the top three places among European teams at the 2019 World Cup. For the 2024 tournament, Great Britain did not qualify, as England were unable to secure qualification via the 2023–24 Nations League.