The 2012 London Olympics live long in the memory for many reasons. But for many people, the highlight that sticks out is the sight of Team GB playing football for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Great Britain stopped entering teams before the 1978 Olympic Games, on account of differences between the home nations and concerns about their international recognition.
But as hosts in 2012, Team GB fielded both men’s and women’s squads, with a blend of famous names and young stars. Here, we take a look at how the players involved have fared since, with a top five ranked by major honours won in the last 12 years.
Top 5 most successful Team GB London 2012 football squad players
5. Karen Bardsley
Fifth on our list is Karen Bardsley, Team GB’s women’s goalkeeper at the 2012 Olympics.
Now retired, Bardsley was in the prime of her career at the London games, aged 27. She was playing for Swedish side Linköpings FC at the time, but would soon return to England.
She joined Manchester City’s women’s side in 2014, and made 102 appearances in sky blue. Her time in Manchester, up to her 2022 retirement, was littered with cups.
Bardsley won four league cups, three Women’s FA Cups and the 2016 Women’s Super League (WSL) title.
4. Aaron Ramsey
Next up is the only Welshman on our list, Aaron Ramsey. He played all five matches for Team GB, and scored a goal in the quarter-final against South Korea
At just 21 at the time of the Olympic Games, Ramsey had his whole career to play, and the former Arsenal wonderkid has had a pretty good one on the whole.
It would take a few more seasons for Ramsey to truly hit his stride in North London, but he scored the winning goals in both the 2014 and 2017 FA Cup finals, and won it in 2015 too.
Along with his three FA Cups, Ramsey won three Community Shields with Arsenal, before moving to Juventus. While in Italy, Ramsey added Serie A and the Coppa Italia to his cabinet. A spell with Rangers also yielded a Scottish Cup.
3. Steph Houghton
Another former Arsenal player, Steph Houghton was aged 24 at the time of the games, and had just won a second WSL title with the Gunners months before the tournament kicked off.
At the peak of her powers, Houghton was considered one of the finest central defenders in the women’s game.
She would win another FA Cup and WSL Cup with Arsenal before departing for Manchester City in 2014. Houghton would be key to establishing the Citizens as a serious force in the WSL.
During her time in Manchester, Houghton won a further three FA Cups and four more WSL Cups, as well as the 2016 WSL title.
2. Jill Scott
A fellow member of Manchester City’s 2016 WSL winning squad, Jill Scott has become an icon of women’s football in England.
The midfielder had seen the women’s game steadily flourish across her 18-year career, from the often amateur organisations she saw at the start, to lifting the European Championships in 2022
Scott was 25 at the time of the 2012 Olympics, and was playing for Everton. Like Steph Houghton, she joined Manchester City not long after the games, and was part of the same very successful team.
While at City, she won three FA Cups, three WSL Cups and the 2016 WSL, but her involvement in England’s 2022 Euros win is what puts her so high up this list.
1. Eniola Aluko
Topping our list is Eniola Aluko, who was one of Team GB’s brightest talents going into the tournament, and was on the verge of a big move back to Chelsea.
Aluko was incredibly successful for the Blues, winning three WSL titles and two FA Cups before her departure in 2018.
A move to Juventus followed, where she won both Serie A and the Coppa Italia in her debut season.
