The competition was divided into 3 rounds; the preliminary round, the first, and then the second round comprising of quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final bronze and gold medal match.
The tournament was won by Sweden, followed by the silver medalist Yugoslavia, and then Denmark with a bronze medal. The top-scorer was Gunnar Nordahl of Sweden and John Hansen of Denmark, each scoring 7 goals in the contest.
The football competition at the 1952 Olympics was held in Finland and persisted from 15 July to 2 August. This event was an indication of the arrival of the Hungary National Football Team, also known as the ‘Golden Team’.
After the preliminary and first round, the qualifying teams entered the quarterfinals where teams were shortlisted again to compete with each other in the semifinals.
The successful teams (Germany and Sweden) played the bronze medal match where Sweden gained the victory, while it was Hungary who won the gold medal in the final match with Yugoslavia.
The football contest at the 1956 Olympics was held in Australia and lasted from 24 November to 8 December. The tournament had only 11 participating teams with 5 withdrawals.
The final gold medal match featured the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. The Soviet Union won the gold medal while Yugoslavia was awarded silver and Bulgaria with bronze
