Football at the 2008 Summer Olympics

The formats and rules for the Olympic football competitions were the same as in 2004, although the women’s field had been expanded from 10 to 12 teams, against 16 in the men’s tournament. The matches were played in six stadiums spread out over five cities: Beijing, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shenyang and Tianjin. The men’s final was the only match contested in the “Bird’s Nest”, or formally the National Stadium in Beijing.