Why France won't be given star above their crest if they win Olympic football tournament
It has happened before.
Tom Jenkins
France will not have the opportunity to add an extra star to their crest if they win Olympic gold in football on home soil, despite a previous nation doing so.
Football is never the main focus of the Olympics and is not considered a major tournament by the majority of nations with the squads being required to feature players 23 and under with three older players permitted.
With the World Cup and continent specific major tournaments already on offer every four years alongside the awkward schedule the Olympics provides, Olympic gold has never been regarded as a top prize in the world of football.
However, this hasn't always been the case with a recent example being Brazil at both the 2016 and 2020 games.
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Until 2016 Brazil had never won the Olympic gold despite being the most dominant nation throughout FIFA World Cup history making securing gold at their home games in 2016 a priority.
Rather fittingly it was Neymar Jr who secured his country's gold medal, as he scored the winning penalty against Germany and the Brazilians continued their form in 2021 as Richarlison starred in their gold medal run.
Winning Olympic gold hasn't always been just about the medal, with the gold medal match previously having higher stakes with a 'gold star' on the line.
Paris 1924 and Amsterdam 1928 were both considered by football's governing bodies to be world championships, essentially making them equivalents to the FIFA World Cup.
The winner of both of those gold medals was unsurprisingly Uruguay, who dominated football in that particular era which climaxed with their win at the first ever World Cup in 1930.
These three wins as well as their 1950 World Cup mean the Uruguay national team wear four gold stars above their crest.
On May 24, 2023, FIFA officially clarified this by officially publishing the history of them recognizing those particular Olympic football tournaments as being directly organised by FIFA.
However, it has also been made clear that the 1924 and 1928 tournaments will remain the only two Olympics that are considered on par with the World Cup.
This means any dream of adding a third star to the cockerel for France's star studded 2024 lineup have been ended.
The likes of Michael Olise, Alexandre Lacazette, and Jean-Philippe Mateta will head into a semi-final clash against Egypt on Monday as they look to guarantee themselves a medal in Paris.