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All medalists since Atlanta 1996

Theo

  • France will host the women’s Olympic football tournament from July 25 to August 10, 2024.
  • The first edition of the competition took place in Atlanta in 1996.
  • Canada are the defending champions after winning gold at Tokyo 2020.

The eighth edition of the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament will take place in France from July 25 to August 10.

12 nations will compete for Olympic glory, with the games taking place in seven cities across the country.

Here we list all the medal-winning teams in the history of the competition.

UNITED STATES

Gold: Four (Atlanta 1996, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012)

Silver: One (Sydney 2000)

Bronze: One (Tokyo 2020)

Unsurprisingly, the United States has dominated the women’s Olympic football tournament, winning four of the first five editions.

Legendary players such as Abby Wambach, Kristine Lilly, Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe played integral roles in their victorious campaigns.

But at Rio 2016, the United States suffered its first medal failure in tournament history. It bounced back at Tokyo 2020, winning bronze and returning to the podium.

Germany

Gold: One (Rio 2016)

Bronze: Three (Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008)

After finishing third three times, Germany won its first Olympic title in 2016.

They beat Sweden 2-1 in the final, with goals from Dzsenifer Marozsan and an own goal from Linda Sembrant contributing to their victory.

German striker Melanie Behringer emerged as the tournament’s top scorer, finding the net five times during the competition.

Canada

Gold: One (Tokyo 2020)

Bronze: Two (London 2012, Rio 2016)

Canada won silver at the 2012 and 2016 tournaments before finding ultimate glory at Tokyo 2020.

After a tough group stage that saw them draw with Great Britain and Japan, Canada qualified by beating Brazil on penalties and beating the United States 1-0 in the semi-finals.

This led to a gold medal match against Sweden, where they triumphed once again on penalties to claim the coveted Olympic title.

Norway

Gold: One (Sydney 2000)

Bronze: 1 (Atlanta 1996)

Norway was the only team to interrupt the United States’ Olympic dominance between 1996 and 2012.

At the 2000 edition in Sydney, Hege Riise’s teammates beat the Americans in the final on penalties.

Earlier in the tournament, the two teams met in the group stage, where the United States emerged victorious with a 2-0 win.

Brazil

Silver: Two (Athens 2004, Beijing 2008)

Brazil reached the gold medal final in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008.

Despite the presence of the legendary Marta, considered one of the best players of all time, they were narrowly beaten by the United States in overtime on two occasions.

Sweden

Silver: Two (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020)

Like Brazil, Sweden reached two finals but were beaten both times.

They lost to Germany in the gold medal match at Rio 2016 and were then beaten by Canada in a penalty shootout at Tokyo 2020.

Between these two Olympic editions, the Scandinavians achieved a third place at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, a success they repeated in 2023.

Japan

Silver: One (London 2012)

At London 2012, a Japanese team featuring national team stalwarts such as Homare Sawa, Saki Kumagai and Aya Miyama finished second.

They were beaten 2-1 in the gold medal match by the United States, the same team they had defeated in the Women’s World Cup final a year earlier.

RP China

Silver: One (Atlanta 1996)

In the 1990s, China established itself as one of the most consistent international football teams.

They finished fourth at the 1995 World Cup and reached the final of the first women’s Olympic football tournament a year later, losing 2–1 to the United States.

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