Olympic medal began in 1896 medals started to be given to successful olympian competitors. However, gold medals were not awarded at the inaugural Olympics in 1896 in Athens, Greece. The winners were instead given a silver medal and an olive branch, while runners-up received a laurel branch and a copper or bronze medal. In 1900, most winners received cups or trophies instead of medals. The custom of the sequence of gold, silver, and bronze for the first three places dates from the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis, Missouri in the United States. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has retroactively assigned gold,
Football at the Summer Olympics 1972 tournament ※ Countries ranked by total medals won including unofficial (1900 and 1904). ※ Bronze medals shared in 1972 tournament Football at the Summer Olympics Association football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games as a men's competition sport, except 1896 and 1932. Women's football was added to the official program in 1996. Football was not included on the program at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, as international football was in its infancy at the time. However, sources claim that an unofficial football tournament was organized during the first competition, in which an Athens XI lost