Why didn’t England play England in the European Championship?

At the Olympic Games, the Royal Family decided, on grounds of etiquette, that all those who were part of the territories associated with the British Crown would compete as Team GB, known as Great Britain (GBR).

Olympic athletes must be from different parts of the United Kingdom, and not from countries within Great Britain, such as Northern Ireland and the Isles of Man and Channel, which are located in the United Kingdom and have no connection with the GBR. .

The smallest country that makes up the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, which has lived through three decades of civil war and signed the so-called Belfast Agreement in 1998, can opt for British and Irish citizenship offered by the Republic. Ireland dominates most of the island. So in Olympic football, Northern Irish athletes have the option of competing for Team Great Britain or Team Ireland.

At the Olympics, the union also supports countries on the medal table. If they split, the number of medals won by each country would put England below Russia, with other countries falling further down the overall sports record table.

It is worth remembering that the British Olympic Association (BOA) is the person responsible for all representatives making up the GBR team at the Olympic Games, which includes remote overseas territories such as the Falkland Islands and Gibraltar. Not belonging to the United Kingdom or Great Britain.