⚽ Football | Why has UK more than one national team?

Not a question about 2022 event, but why does UK get more than one team? Can JPN have two

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Japan is one country

The UK is a union of 4 countries so each can have a team

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Well, they invented it. They’re different countries in as much as this. True in rugby as well

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Going by the Olympics, China also gets 2 teams.

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Give the other teams a chance?he he

Don’t the teams represent the football association? Four football associations so four teams.

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I thought Macau gets their own team as well?

Indeed you could argue one combined team would be stronger.

It’s interesting that Ireland has split football teams but a unified rugby team.

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Then Japan can have team Okinawa, which was American and has own language. Even drove on the wrong side of the roads like the Yanks haha. (The day the change to driving on the correct side of the road must been interesting, even in New Zealand/Japan need watch out for toursit drivers haha)

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England and Scotland FA never see eye to eye.
Real situation, there are 4 separate teams for United Kingdom.
There are China PR, Hong Kong, Macau and Chinese Taipei national team, but there is no “China” national team.
There are Northern Ireland and Rep of Ireland national team, but there is no “Ireland” national team.
There are Korea Rep and Korea DPR national team, but there us no “Korea” national team.
There are Curacao, Aruba and Sint Maarten national team, but there is no “Netherlands Antilles” national team.

Macau has no National Olympic committee, only Macau FA.

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Oh right. And HK as well. So I guess China according to the Olympics gets 4. China, HK, Macau, and Chinese Taipei

Rugby Union was played before that rather vulgar association took off across Ireland. It was a unified Ireland.

It is surprising that rugby hasn’t split since then. My guess is it’s because it was amateur until recently.

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A lot of sports are still together.

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Macau not in Olympic.

That would have been the case in the 80s when all the teams were stronger and had better players or at least a few that could grace any team on the planet.

But in the Olympics, the GB combined football team has been average.

We have only had a combined team once and they were mostly the youngsters.

A combined squad of 26 would probably be 24 or so English guys though.

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Well, I said stronger, not necessarily strong compared to other countries. I don’t see how a team made up of the best candidates from a larger pool of players wouldn’t be stronger, all else being equal.

UK is a kingdom, or union, not a country by standard definitions. The union that is the UK contains 4 countries, and therefore each of them compete separately.

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I’m sure they could if they wanted to dilute their talent. The fact that the UK would rather have several weaker teams than one stronger one really says a lot about the pride/stubbornness of their different “countries.” It would be like if the US had separate teams for each state. (Both countries are theoretically unions, but in actuality are clearly one country.)

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That correct 4 countries. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Britain containing 3 the NI 1 , so 1 + 3 = 4

Weird, I don’t see England on the list of UN member states.

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