User blog:Porterfield/Great Britain Football Team at London 2012

The home nations of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have been opposed to the idea of a unified Great Britain football team since the idea was first announced by the British Olympic Association many months ago. Just today, in an effort to discourage Scottish players from joining the G.B. team, former Scotland manager Craig Brown went so far as to say, "I would rather lose as Scotland than win as Great Britain." That's laying it on a bit thick, don't you think? During the course of this drama, FIFA has kept reassuring these home nations that their individual autonomy within world football will remain the same no matter how they field a team at the Olympics. So what are they worried about?

Perhaps they feel bullied. Yesterday, the English Football Association re-announced their support for unified team to which the other home nations responded, again, with a "thanks, but no thanks" (You can read about that in my | blog post on the Olympics Wiki). Today, the English FA claimed that they have letters from the other three home nations agreeing to the terms of selection for a unified team (which hasn't existed since a failed qualification attempt for the 1972 Olympics), which led to Craig Brown's rebuttal. All this back-and-forth is making me nauseous, because really, what's at stake here? The next time the Olympics are hosted by G.B., none of these people will be around anymore. Why not have a one-off unified team, especially if FIFA accepts the exception? If they did it from 1908-1972, why not now? 2012 football matches are not only being staged in England, but also Glasgow and Cardiff. The 2012 Olympics are London's, but the 2012 Olympic football tournament (for both men and women) belongs to all of Great Britain. I personally support a unified team because as host nation, it's just appropriate. Athletes from the home nations have always represented Team Great Britain. There are Scottish cyclists (Chris Hoy anyone?), Welsh cyclists (Nicole Cooke anyone?), and when golf is introduced at the 2016 games in Rio, I'm certain that Northern Irish world-beaters Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell will represent Great Britain. Why not football?