Since the 1992 tournament, male squads have been required to consist of players under 23 years old; since the 1996 tournament, a maximum of three players over the age of 23 have been allowed per squad.

This is a list of all-time overage players (also known as wild card players in some countries) in Olympic football since the 1996 tournament.

Overage players rule in Olympic football have influenced other competitions like Asian Games football and Pan American Games football.

Africa (CAF)

Algeria

Overage players of Algeria national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 Abdelghani Demmou (DF) Sofiane Bendebka (MF) Baghdad Bounedjah (FW)

Cameroon

Overage players of Cameroon national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 Serge Mimpo (DF) Patrick M'Boma (FW) did not select
2008
 Antonio Ghomsi (DF) Gustave Bebbe (FW) did not select

Egypt

Overage players of Egypt national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Ahmed Fathi (DF) Mohamed Aboutrika (MF) Emad Moteab (FW)
2020
 Mohamed El Shenawy (GK) Ahmed Hegazi (DF) Mahmoud Hamdy (DF)

Gabon

Overage players of Gabon national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Didier Ovono (GK) Bruno Ecuele Manga (DF) did not select

Ghana

Overage players of Ghana national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Joe Addo (DF) did not select
2004
 Baffour Gyan (FW) did not select

Ivory Coast

Overage players of Ivory Coast national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2008
 did not select
2020
 Eric Bailly (DF) Franck Kessié (MF) Max Gradel (FW)

Mali

Overage players of Mali national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 Fousseiny Tangara (GK) did not select

Morocco

Overage players of Morocco national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 El Houssaine Ouchla (DF) Adel Chbouki (MF) Salaheddine Bassir (FW)
2004
 Nadir Lamyaghri (GK) Otmane El Assas (MF) Bouchaib El Moubarki (FW)
2012
 Houssine Kharja (MF) Nordin Amrabat (FW) did not select

Nigeria

Overage players of Nigeria national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Uche Okechukwu (DF) Emmanuel Amunike (MF) Daniel Amokachi (FW)
2000
 Godwin Okpara (DF) Garba Lawal (MF) did not select
2008
 Peter Odemwingie (FW) did not select
2016
 Daniel Akpeyi (GK) Mikel John Obi (MF) did not select

Senegal

Overage players of Senegal national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Papa Gueye (DF) Mohamed Diamé (MF) did not select

South Africa

Overage players of South Africa national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 Brian Baloyi (GK) Dumisa Ngobe (MF) did not select
2016
 Itumeleng Khune (GK) Eric Mathoho (DF) did not select
2020
 Ronwen Williams (GK) did not select

Tunisia

Overage players of Tunisia national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Chokri El Ouaer (GK) did not select
2004
 Khaled Fadhel (GK) José Clayton (DF) Mohamed Jedidi (MF)

Asia (AFC)

Australia

Overage players of Australia men's national under-23 soccer team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Steve Horvat (MF) Aurelio Vidmar (FW) did not select
2000
 Stan Lazaridis (MF) Josip Skoko (MF) Mark Viduka (FW)
2004
 Craig Moore (DF) Tim Cahill (MF) John Aloisi (FW)
2008
 Jade North (DF) David Carney (MF) Archie Thompson (FW)
2020
 Mitchell Duke (FW) did not select

China

Overage players of China national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2008
 Li Weifeng (DF) Zheng Zhi (MF) Han Peng (FW)

Iraq

Overage players of Iraq national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 Haidar Abdul-Jabar (DF) Abdul-Wahab Abu Al-Hail (MF) Razzaq Farhan (FW)
2016
 Ahmed Ibrahim (DF) Saad Abdul-Amir (MF) Hammadi Ahmed (FW)

Japan

Overage players of Japan national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 did not select
2000
 Seigo Narazaki (GK) Ryuzo Morioka (DF) Atsuhiro Miura (MF)
2004
 Hitoshi Sogahata (GK) Shinji Ono (MF) did not select
2008
 did not select
2012
 Maya Yoshida (DF) Yūhei Tokunaga (DF) did not select
2016
 Hiroki Fujiharu (DF) Tsukasa Shiotani (DF) Shinzo Koroki (FW)
2020
 Maya Yoshida (DF) Hiroki Sakai (DF) Wataru Endo (MF)

Kuwait

Overage players of Kuwait national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 Jamal Mubarak (DF) Abdullah Wabran (DF) Esam Sakeen (MF)

Saudi Arabia

Overage players of Saudi Arabia national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Mohammed Al-Khilaiwi (DF) Fuad Anwar (MF) Hamzah Idris Falatah (FW)
2020
 Yasser Al-Shahrani (DF) Salman Al-Faraj (MF) Salem Al-Dawsari (MF)

South Korea

Overage players of South Korea national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Lee Lim-saeng (DF)
Lee Kyung-chun[a](DF) 		Ha Seok-ju (MF) Hwang Sun-hong (FW)
2000
 Kang Chul (DF) Kim Sang-sik (DF) Kim Do-hoon (FW)
2004
 Yoo Sang-chul (MF) Chung Kyung-ho (FW) did not select
2008
 Kim Dong-jin (DF) Kim Jung-woo (MF) did not select
2012
 Jung Sung-ryong (GK) Kim Chang-soo (DF) Park Chu-young (FW)
2016
 Jang Hyun-soo (DF) Suk Hyun-jun (FW) Son Heung-min (FW)
2020
 Park Ji-soo (DF) Kwon Chang-hoon (MF) Hwang Ui-jo (FW)
  1. ^ Lee Lim-saeng was injured in the second match. Reserve player Lee Kyung-chun appeared in the third match.

United Arab Emirates

Overage players of United Arab Emirates national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Ali Khasif (GK) Ismail Al Hammadi (MF) Ismail Matar (FW)

Europe (UEFA)

Belarus

Overage players of Belarus national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Renan Bressan (MF) Stanislaw Drahun (MF) Sergei Kornilenko (FW)

Belgium

Overage players of Belgium national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2008
 Sepp De Roover (DF) Maarten Martens (MF) did not select

Czech Republic

Overage players of Czech Republic national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 did not select

Denmark

Overage players of Denmark national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 Edigeison Gomes (DF) Lasse Vibe (FW) Emil Larsen (FW)

France

Overage players of France Olympic football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 did not select
2020
 Téji Savanier (MF) Florian Thauvin (FW) André-Pierre Gignac (FW)
2024

Great Britain

Overage players of Great Britain men's Olympic football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 England Micah Richards (DF) Wales Ryan Giggs (MF) Wales Craig Bellamy (FW)

Greece

Overage players of Greece national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 Konstantinos Nebegleras (MF) Miltiadis Sapanis (MF) Ieroklis Stoltidis (MF)

Germany

Overage players of Germany Olympic football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 Sven Bender (MF) Lars Bender (MF) Nils Petersen (FW)
2020
 Maximilian Arnold (MF) Max Kruse (FW) did not select

Hungary

Overage players of Hungary national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 did not select

Italy

Overage players of Italy national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Gianluca Pagliuca (GK) Massimo Crippa (MF) Marco Branca (FW)
2000
 did not select
2004
 Matteo Ferrari (DF) Andrea Pirlo (MF) did not select
2008
 Tommaso Rocchi (FW) did not select

Netherlands

Overage players of Netherlands national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2008
 Kew Jaliens (DF) Gerald Sibon (FW) Roy Makaay (FW)

Portugal

Overage players of Portugal Olympic football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Rui Bento (DF) Paulo Alves (FW) Capucho (FW)
2004
 Nuno Frechaut (DF) Fernando Meira (DF) Luís Boa Morte (FW)
2016
 André Martins (MF) Sérgio Oliveira (MF) Salvador Agra (FW)

Romania

Overage players of Romania national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2020
 Florin Ștefan (DF) did not select

Serbia

Overage players of Serbia national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 did not select
2008
 Vladimir Stojković (GK) Aleksandar Živković (MF) Miljan Mrdaković (FW)

Slovakia

Overage players of Slovakia national under-21 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 Martin Lipčák (GK) Radoslav Kráľ (DF) Michal Pančík (MF)

Spain

Overage players of Spain national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 did not select
2000
 did not select
2012
 Juan Mata (MF) Javi Martínez (MF) Adrián López (FW)
2020
 Mikel Merino (MF) Dani Ceballos (MF) Marco Asensio (FW)

Sweden

Overage players of Sweden national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 Alexander Milošević (DF) Abdul Khalili (MF) Astrit Ajdarević (MF)

Switzerland

Overage players of Switzerland national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Diego Benaglio (GK) Timm Klose (DF) Xavier Hochstrasser (MF)

North America, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF)

Costa Rica

Overage players of Costa Rica national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 Whayne Wilson (FW) did not select

Honduras

Overage players of Honduras national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 did not select
2008
 Samuel Caballero (DF) Emil Martínez (MF) Carlos Pavón (FW)
2012
 Maynor Figueroa (DF) Roger Espinoza (MF) Jerry Bengtson (FW)
2016
 Johnny Palacios (DF) Romell Quioto (FW) did not select
2020
 Brayan Moya (MF) Jorge Benguché (FW) did not select

Mexico

Overage players of Mexico national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Jorge Campos (GK) Claudio Suárez (DF) Luis García (MF)
2004
 Israel López (MF) Antônio Naelson "Sinha" (MF) Omar Bravo (FW)
2012
 José Jesús Corona (GK) Carlos Salcido (DF) Oribe Peralta (FW)
2016
 Alfredo Talavera (GK) Jorge Torres Nilo (DF) Oribe Peralta (FW)
2020
 Guillermo Ochoa (GK) Luis Romo (MF) Henry Martín (FW)

United States

Overage players of United States men's national under-23 soccer team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Kasey Keller (GK) Alexi Lalas (DF) did not select
2000
 Brad Friedel (GK) Jeff Agoos (DF) Frankie Hejduk (MF)
2008
 Brad Guzan (GK) Michael Parkhurst (DF) Brian McBride (FW)

Oceania (OFC)

Fiji

Overage players of Fiji national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 Simione Tamanisau (GK) Alvin Singh (DF) Roy Krishna (FW)

New Zealand

Overage players of New Zealand national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2008
 Ryan Nelsen (DF) Simon Elliott (MF) Chris Killen (FW)
2012
 Ryan Nelsen (DF) Michael McGlinchey (MF) Shane Smeltz (FW)
2020
 Winston Reid (DF) Michael Boxall (DF) Chris Wood (FW)

South America (CONMEBOL)

Argentina

Overage players of Argentina national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 José Chamot (DF) Roberto Sensini (DF) Diego Simeone (MF)
2004
 Roberto Ayala (DF) Gabriel Heinze (DF) Kily González (MF)
2008
 Juan Román Riquelme (MF) Nicolás Pareja (DF) Javier Mascherano (MF)
2016
 Gerónimo Rulli (GK) Víctor Cuesta (DF) did not select
2020
 Jeremías Ledesma (GK) did not select

Brazil

Overage players of Brazil national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Aldair (DF) Rivaldo (MF) Bebeto (FW)
2000
 did not select
2008
 Thiago Silva (DF) Ronaldinho (MF) did not select
2012
 Thiago Silva (DF) Marcelo (DF) Hulk (FW)
2016
 Weverton (GK) Renato Augusto (MF) Neymar (FW)
2020
 Aderbar Santos (GK) Diego Carlos (DF) Dani Alves (DF)

Chile

Overage players of Chile Olympic football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2000
 Nelson Tapia (GK) Pedro Reyes (DF) Iván Zamorano (FW)

Colombia

Overage players of Colombia national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2016
 William Tesillo (DF) Dorlan Pabón (FW) Teófilo Gutiérrez (FW)

Paraguay

Overage players of Paraguay national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2004
 Carlos Gamarra (DF) Julio César Enciso (MF) José Cardozo (FW)

Uruguay

Overage players of Uruguay national under-23 football team

Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
2012
 Egidio Arévalo (MF) Edinson Cavani (FW) Luis Suárez (FW)

References

External links

Football at the Summer Olympics
Category