Tuesday 31 March 2015 12:56, UK
Former Team GB men’s football boss Stuart Pearce has echoed the Football Association’s disappointment after the governing body abandoned plans to enter teams at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
On Monday night, Sky Sports News HQ exclusively revealed the FA were ditching plans to enter a men’s and a women’s team in Rio after their proposal was rejected by the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish FA’s.
"After careful discussion, The FA has decided not to enter either a women's or a men's team into the Rio Olympics 2016,” an FA statement read.
"We are disappointed not to be able to go ahead, given the fantastic opportunity it would have afforded the players and the broader exposure it would have brought to the game in our countries."
For me there is a group of 18 players as well as staff and coaches that are going to miss out badly on this one, I really do and it's a massive, massive shame.
Speaking on Tuesday’s Morning View on Sky Sports News HQ, Pearce insisted the cream of British talent are being deprived of a unique and unforgettable tournament experience.
“I can only speak from first-hand experience and it was one of the best life experiences I’ve ever had let alone what it did for me footballing-wise,” Pearce said.
'Resistance'
“We had the likes of Ryan Giggs and Craig Bellamy in the squad, you ask them what they thought about participating in the Olympics. They were absolutely blown away by it and I think it’s a real shame not just for the men’s game but for the exposure of the women’s game as well.
“There was resistance three years ago when we were putting in a team from the Home Nations at London and at the same time they (the individual Home Nations FA’s) said our sovereignty will be diminished, we might get lumped together for World Cup qualification and that never came to the fore.
“For me there is a group of 18 players as well as staff and coaches that are going to miss out badly on this one, I really do and it's a massive, massive shame.”
Outgoing FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce, who raised the issue following a report by the organising committee for the Olympic Football Tournaments, said FIFA would not sanction a Team GB side without the support of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
"They confirmed to me that the British Olympic Association would not receive FIFA's permission to enter a Team GB football team without the consent of all four British associations.” Boyce said earlier this month.
“FIFA has the final say on whether a football team can be entered for the Olympic Games."
