Team GB gets go-ahead?

therecklessone

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/4206568.stm

Fifa has said that Great Britain must enter a team at the 2012 Olympics but that each home nation's individual status will not be affected.

The idea has been mooted before but has never been adpoted because of fears that Fifa would insist on a Great Britain team at the World Cup as well.

But Fifa president Sepp Blatter said there was no danger of this happening.

"The four British associations will not lose the rights and privileges acquired back in 1947," Blatter insisted.

"They will play with one team but it is up to them how they do it.

"It can be a mixed team, it can be from just one of the home nations, whatever they want to do."

Good move IMO, it would be weird for the Olympicas to take place in London in 2012 and not have a British team, what with the whole "birthplace of football" malarky.

Got me thinking...whats the chance of an all-Ireland team? Is there a pre-qualifying for the Olympics?

Chardee MacDennis

i would welcome an all irish team for the olympics but only on the same conditions britain have.

oh and as long as we dont have fecking Irelands call as the national anthem.

talla

Call_me_al wrote:

oh and as long as we dont have fecking Irelands call as the national anthem.

Couldnt agree more

A Dub in Glasgo

Surely this should be team UK?

Logical way to go and hopefully FIFA and UEFA will do the same somewhere down the line for the WC and EC

jubbly

talla wrote:

Couldnt agree more

Same here !!!!!!!!!!!! I hate that gay song

Highlander

A Dub in Glasgo wrote:

Surely this should be team UK?

Logical way to go and hopefully FIFA and UEFA will do the same somewhere down the line for the WC and EC

No as far as I know for Olympic purposes it's always Great Britian, the Olympic Council of Ireland covers the whole Island of Ireland, hence you have situatuons where you'd have Wayne McCullagh on the Ireland team instead of the GB Team

therecklessone

Highlander wrote:

No as far as I know for Olympic purposes it's always Great Britian, the Olympic Council of Ireland covers the whole Island of Ireland, hence you have situatuons where you'd have Wayne McCullagh on the Ireland team instead of the GB Team

Correct.

As for the Ireland's call thing...the Irish Olympic team use the tricolour and the Irish national anthem (for those few occassions we win a gold... )

Probably a discussion for the politics board (and I won't be answering any replies on here, so if you do want to debate it I'll gladly take it up on the politics board), but I love the way people rush to condemn the song (which they haven't used to date) without thinking about the positive aspects of an all-Ireland team, or for that matter and aii-Ireland league. We stand no chance of encouraging unionists to accept and participate in a 32 county republic with that attitude.

jubbly

why do we want them anyway therecklessone ? Its not like it will make the slightest bit of difference in football.

therecklessone

jubbly wrote:

why do we want them anyway therecklessone ? Its not like it will make the slightest bit of difference in football.

Well, for start it would go some way to help us integrate our domestic leagues, which IMO is essential for the continued improvement of LOI teams in Europe, as I believe the structure of the two LOI divisions is holding us back in that regard.

Things haven't always been this bad on the international front for the North, some people seem to think football started on this island with Jackie Charlton taking charge of our team. From the current NI squad I wouldn't say no to Roy Carroll, David Healy, Keith Gillespie, and Steve Davis. I'd also like to see Neil Lennon pull on an Ireland jersey.

They also have one Patrick McCourt of Shamrock Rovers among their u-21 squad, and seeing as the Olympic squads are made of of u-23 players (with the exception of 3 overage players) the games would be a great chance for LOI and Irish League players to play some of the best on an international stage.

And in the political arena, it would be a good opportunity to bring together the two main communities on this island in a shared love of the game.

jubbly

If it meant a stronger domestic league then yes. Apart from that I wouldnt be a fan of it.

You would see a hacked down version of Ireland playing.

therecklessone

jubbly wrote:

You would see a hacked down version of Ireland playing.

What?