The

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

tournament of the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

was won by

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. This remains Sweden's only international title at a senior male football level and was the first international appearance of the trio that would later be known as

Gre-No-Li Gre-No-Li is a contraction of the surnames of three Swedish footballers: Gunnar Gren, Gunnar Nordahl and Nils Liedholm. The denomination was colloquially used after these players composed a formidable trio of attacking players while playing for th ...

dominating the

Italian league The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

A.C. Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional Association football, football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 ...

in the 1950s. It was the first international football tournament ever to be broadcast on television, with the semi-finals, final and bronze medal play-off all being broadcast live in full on the BBC Television Service.

Venues

Squads

Final tournament

The tournament began on 26 July 1948 with a preliminary round of two matches:

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

defeating

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

6–0 and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

beating

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

3–1, with Faas Wilkes scoring two goals for the Dutch. In the first round, which began five days later, the Netherlands played

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was sit ...

, Britain prevailing 4–3 after extra time. In goal for Britain was

Ronnie Simpson Ronald Campbell Simpson (11 October 1930 – 19 April 2004) was a Scottish football player and coach. He is mainly remembered for his time with Celtic, where he was the goalkeeper in the ''Lisbon Lions'' team that won the European Cup in 1967. ...

, who would go on to become the oldest Scottish international debutant in history and one of the

Lisbon Lions The Lisbon Lions is the nickname given to the Celtic F.C., Celtic team that won the UEFA Champions League, European Cup at the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon, Portugal on 25 May 1967 European Cup Final, 1967, defeating Inter Milan 2–1. The name i ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

(victors over

) and

(3–0 winners against

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

) also went through.

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

eliminated

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

's style of play at

White Hart Lane White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...

attracted much attention. Their forward line contained three exceptional players; one of them

Gunnar Gren Johan Gunnar Gren (; 31 October 1920 – 10 November 1991) was a Swedish professional football player and coach. He is best remembered for playing for IFK Göteborg and A.C. Milan. A creative forward, known for his technical skill, vision, ta ...

scored a brace in an easy win. There were two goals, as well, for future

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

star

Željko Čajkovski Željko Čajkovski (5 May 1925 – 11 November 2016) was a Croatian Association football, football player and coach, who played as a Forward (association football), forward. He was born in Zagreb, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Biography ...

in Yugoslavia's 6–1 rout of Luxembourg, although they were behind at half-time.

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

beat

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

5–3.

Walter Bahr Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

Ed Souza Edward Souza-Neto (September 22, 1921 – May 19, 1979) was an American football (soccer), soccer player who earned at least 7 cap (football), caps and scored 3 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team' ...

Charlie Colombo Charles Martin Colombo (July 20, 1920 – May 7, 1986) was an American soccer player who earned 11 caps as center-half for the United States men's national soccer team. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. He also played for the ...

and

John Souza John Souza-Benavides (July 12, 1920 – March 11, 2012) known as John "Clarkie" Souza, was an American soccer player who earned 14 caps and scored 2 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's histor ...

were part of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

team that lost 9–0 to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, conceding five goals at the end of the match when they were down to nine men. They would later participate in the 1950 FIFA World Cup and beat the favourites

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in one of the greatest upsets in football history. In the quarter-finals, Sweden defeated both the South Koreans and the Danes in the semi-final. In the second semi-final, Great Britain played Yugoslavia at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

, going out by three goals to one. 3–1 was also the score in the final in favour of Sweden over Yugoslavia.

Preliminary round

----

First round

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Quarter-finals

---- ---- ----

Semi-finals

----

Bronze medal match

Gold medal match

Bracket

Medalists

Statistics

Goalscorers

;7 goals * John Hansen (Denmark) *

Gunnar Nordahl Nils Gunnar Nordahl (; 19 October 1921 – 15 September 1995) was a Swedish professional footballer. A highly prolific, powerful, and physically strong striker, with an eye for goal, he is best known for his spell at AC Milan from 1949 to 1956, ...

(Sweden) ;5 goals *

Francesco Pernigo Francesco Pernigo (; 10 June 1918 – 15 December 1985) was an Italian footballer who played as a forward. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics with the Italy national football team The Italy national footba ...

(Italy) *

Henry Carlsson Nils Gustav Henry "Garvis" Carlsson (29 October 1917 – 28 May 1999), was a Swedish professional footballer who played as a forward. He represented AIK, Stade Français, and Atletico Madrid during a club career that spanned between 1939 ...

(Sweden) *

Kjell Rosén Kjell Rosén (24 April 1921 – 13 June 1999) was a Swedish footballer who played the majority of his career at Malmö FF Malmö Fotbollförening, commonly known as Malmö FF, Malmö, or MFF, is a professional football club and the most suc ...

(Sweden) ;4 goals * Stjepan Bobek (Yugoslavia) ;3 goals * Bob Hardisty (Great Britain) *

Emidio Cavigioli Emidio Cavigioli (; 3 July 1925 – 23 February 2015) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a forward. Club career Cavigioli played for 6 seasons (65 games, 13 goals) in the Italian Serie A for Aurora Pro Patria 1919 and A. ...

(Italy) *

Servaas Wilkes Servaas "Faas" Wilkes (, 13 October 1923 – 15 August 2006) was a Dutch football forward, who earned a total of 38 caps for the Dutch national team, in which he scored 35 goals (average 0.92 goals per game). However, for a prolonged period of ...

(Netherlands) *

(Sweden) *

(Yugoslavia) ;2 goals *

Karl Aage Hansen Karl Aage Hansen (4 July 1921 – 23 November 1990) was a Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmar ...

(Denmark) * Johannes Pløger (Denmark) * Emilio Caprile (Italy) *

Julien Gales Jules Gales (13 July 1924 – 26 May 1988) was a Luxembourgian footballer. He competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics and the 1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), of ...

(Luxembourg) *

Marcel Paulus Marcel Paulus (20 July 1920 – 19 October 1987) was a Luxembourgian footballer. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as Lond ...

(Luxembourg) *

Fernand Schammel Fernand Schammel (30 March 1923 – 17 May 1961) was a Luxembourgian association football, footballer. He competed in the Football at the 1948 Summer Olympics, men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Career statistics International go ...

(Luxembourg) *

Bram Appel Abraham Leonardus Appel (30 November 1921 – 31 October 1997) was a Dutch footballer who played as a striker and later a manager. Playing career Club Born in Rotterdam but raised in The Hague,Chung Kook-chin Chung Kook-chin (Hangul: 정국진, Hanja: 鄭國振; January 2, 1917 – February 10, 1976) was a Korean football (soccer) player and manager. He is a descendant of the Korean athletic legends The Three Boar Brothers. He was a member of ...

(South Korea) *

Nils Liedholm Nils Erik Liedholm (; 8 October 1922 – 5 November 2007) was a Swedish football midfielder and coach. ''Il Barone'' (The Baron), as he is affectionately known in Italy, was renowned for being part of the Swedish "Gre-No-Li" trio of strikers al ...

(Sweden) *

Gündüz Kılıç "Baba" Gündüz Kılıç (29 October 1918 – 17 May 1980) was a Turkish football player and coach. He was Ali Kılıç's son and Altemur Kılıç's brother. Biography Born in 1918 in Istanbul, Gündüz Kılıç attended Galatasaray Lycee ...

(Turkey) *

Rajko Mitić Rajko Mitić ( sr-Cyrl, Рајко Митић, ; 19 November 1922 – 29 March 2008) was a Serbian footballer, coach, executive and journalist. Mitić is considered one of the most important players in the history of Red Star Belgrade as he is th ...

(Yugoslavia) *

Franjo Wölfl Franjo Wölfl (18 May 1918 – 8 July 1987) was a Croats, Croatian footballer. He played international football first with the Yugoslavia national football team, Kingdom of Yugoslavia national team from 1938 and then the Croatia national footbal ...

(Yugoslavia) ;1 goal *

Karl Aage Præst Karl Aage Præst, also spelled Carl Aage Præst, (26 February 1922 – 19 November 2011) was a Danish football player. Playing in the left winger position, Præst won two Serie A championships with Italian club Juventus FC. He played 24 games a ...

(Denmark) *

Holger Seebach Holger Seebach (17 March 1922 – 30 August 2011) was a Denmark, Danish amateur Association football, footballer, who scored 9 goals in 17 games for the Denmark national football team, won a bronze medal at the 1948 Summer Olympics and competed ...

(Denmark) *

Jørgen Leschly Sørensen Jørgen Leschly Sørensen (24 September 1922 – 21 February 1999) was a Danish footballer who played as a forward. He started as an amateur player in Danish football, and won the 1945 Danish championship with B.93. He played 14 games and s ...

(Denmark) * El Din El Guindy (Egypt) *

René Courbin Raoul Courbin (born 18 August 1926) was a French footballer. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics. He scored a goal against India at the 1948 Olympics 1948 Olympics may refer to: *The 1948 Winter Olympics, which we ...

(France) *

René Persillon René Persillon (16 June 1919 – 27 July 1997) was a French footballer. He competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics and the 1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), offi ...

(France) * Andy Aitken (Great Britain) *

Bill Amor William George Amor (6 November 1919 – 1 May 1988) was an English amateur association football, footballer who represented Great Britain men's Olympic football team, Great Britain at the 1948 Summer Olympics, making one appearance. Although he ...

(Great Britain) * Frank Donovan (Great Britain) *

Dennis Kelleher Dennis Kelleher (20 November 1918 – 20 February 2002) was an Irish footballer who represented Great Britain at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Dennis played amateur football with Barnet, winning the FA Amateur Cup in 1946; he also earned 8 amateur ...

(Great Britain) * Douglas McBain (Great Britain) * Harry McIlvenny (Great Britain) * Sarangapani Raman (India) * Bobby Smith (Ireland) * Adone Stellin (Italy) * Angelo Turconi (Italy) * Nicolas Kettel (Luxembourg) *

Raúl Cárdenas Raúl Cárdenas de la Vega (30 October 1928 – 26 March 2016) was a Mexican professional footballer and manager. He represented Mexico at the 1948 Olympics. Playing career Club Born in Mexico City, Cárdenas began playing football with Real C ...

(Mexico) *

Antonio Figueroa Fernando Antonio Figueroa Rodríguez (2 July 1925 – 22 February 2011) was a Mexican footballer. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and ...

(Mexico) * José Ruiz (Mexico) * Andre Roosenburg (Netherlands) * Bai Chon-go (South Korea) *

Chung Nam-sik Chung Nam-sik (Hangul: 정남식, Hanja: 鄭南湜, 16 February 1917 – 5 April 2005) was a Korean football player and manager. He played as a striker for the South Korea national team during the 1940s and 1950s, including at the 1948 Summer ...

(South Korea) * Choi Song-gon (South Korea) *

Şükrü Gülesin Şükrü Gülesin (September 14, 1922 – July 10, 1977) was a Turkish football player and sports journalist. Almost two meters tall, he was a strong and quick striker, as well as a free kick and penalty specialist, and played for Beşiktaş, ...

(Turkey) *

Lefter Küçükandonyadis , ''Lefteris Antoniadis''; 22 December 1925 – 13 January 2012) was a Turkish professional footballer of Greek descent, who played as a forward. He is often recognized as one of the greatest strikers to play for Fenerbahçe and Turkey. Having won ...

(Turkey) * Huseyin Saygun (Turkey) *

Prvoslav Mihajlović Prvoslav Mihajlović ( sr-cyr, Првослав Михајловић; 13 April 1921 – 28 June 1978) was a Serbian- Yugoslav footballer and head coach. Biography On the national level he played for Yugoslavia national team (13 matches/6 goals ...

(Yugoslavia) *

Branko Stanković Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo. Playing career Club He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...

(Yugoslavia)

References

Sources

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Olympics 1948

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

1948 in association football 1948 1948 1948–49 in English football