By Motin Yeung
Image retrieved from Wikimedia Commons
Sweden
They qualified by winning the UEFA U-21 European Championship. Starting off in a tough group with five-time winners Italy, two-time champions England, and 1994 runner-up Portugal, Sweden shocked the world by going all the way to claim the title of the championship.
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Germany
It is no surprise that the winner of the last World Cup qualified for the Olympics, but Germany’s road to Rio was not as smooth as expected. They had a tough lost of 5-0 against Portugal in the semi-final, but fortunately they were able to qualify through finishing as the four best ranked teams of the UEFA Championship.
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Portugal
They qualified by placing themselves in the top four of the UEFA Championship. In the semi-final, they absolutely demolished the German team with 5-0 victory by dominating the midfield.
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Denmark
Denmark was able to place themselves in the top four of the UEFA Championship despite a defeat to the Germans in the early group stage. Although they lost to their Nordic rivals Sweden in the Semi-finals, they had a fantastic tournament by topping their group.
How to cite this page: “MENS – European teams”, Written by Motin Yeung (2016). Journey to Rio, Olympic Football 2016 Guide, Soccer Politics Blog, Duke University, http://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/tournament-guides/olympic-football-2016-guide/journey-to-rio-qualification-process-rules-for-2016-olympic-games/european-teams/ (accessed on (date)).
Sources:
- FIFA website. Olympic Football Tournament Rio 2016 page. http://www.fifa.com/mensolympic/teams/
