Football news - Age limit could be raised for Olympic football tournament

ByReuters

Published 03/04/2020 at 20:27 GMT

The age limit for the Tokyo Olympics men's football tournament could be raised so that players who were eligible in 2020 will not miss out following the postponement of the Games until the following year, FIFA said on Friday.

Neymar of Brazil bites his medal after the Olympic Men's Final Football match between Brazil and Germany at Maracana Stadium on August 20, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Image credit: Getty Images

Olympic football is usually restricted to under-23 teams for the men's tournament, with three overage players allowed per team.

However, a working group set up by global soccer's governing body FIFA recommended on Friday that the competition should remain open to players born on or after Jan. 1, 1997, as originally planned, FIFA said in a statement.

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This would effectively raise the age limit by one year.

The working group also recommended the postponement of all international matches due to be played in June -- a formality as Euro 2020, the Copa America and the month's World Cup qualifiers have already been called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The recommendations still have to be approved by the FIFA Bureau, a reduced version of its decision-making Council.

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