Spain national under-23 football team

1920–1988 Summer Olympics

Unlike later tournaments, the Summer Olympics used to be represented by senior or amateur teams. Spain's first participation in the Olympics was in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1920. Fourteen teams entered the competition which was organized on a knockout basis. Twelve teams entered the first round, with the six winners joining the host nation (Belgium) and France, in the quarter-finals. Czechoslovakia, participating in their first international tournament, cruised to the final, inflicting heavy defeats on Yugoslavia (who played their first ever international match in the competition), Norway, and France. Belgium beat a talented Spain and then the Netherlands on their way to the final. Belgium won the gold medal by default after Czechoslovakia walked off in protest during the final, unhappy with the performance of the English referee, John Lewis. The Bergvall System was used to determine second and third places. The beaten quarter-finalists played-off, Spain emerged triumphant overcoming Sweden 2–1 and Italy 2–0. Ordinarily, Spain would then have played the beaten finalists, but Czechoslovakia had been disqualified from the tournament. Spain thus advanced straight to the silver medal match against Holland, beaten in the semi-finals by gold medallists Belgium. Spain won 3–1.

1924 was not as successful, Spain bowed out of competition in the first round after losing to Italy 1–0.

At the 1928 Summer Olympics things would go from good to worse. Spain were, potentially, much to be feared. Defeated once since the last Olympic Games tournament their traditional tournament nerves would handicap them here, a key note that would strike throughout the coming years. The unavoidable loss of their experienced captain Pedro Vallana after their first game, though, would cost them dearly. Spain started with a 7–1 win over Mexico, then a 1–1 draw against Italy which would cause the match to go on a reply. There Spain were eventually eliminating with a 1–7 defeat.

Spain would not compete in another Olympic tournament until the 1968 edition held in Mexico. There the team fielded an under-21 amateur squad and reached the quarter-finals, losing only to the host nation. Meanwhile, communist nations entered their top professional teams using a loophole in the rules.

The team's final two tournaments came in 1976 and 1980, where they failed to make it out of the group stage, being powerless against first teams of the Eastern Bloc.

Debut and Gold at the 1992 Summer Olympics

The football competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics was the first under-23 competition. Spain were awarded a place at the tournament because they were the host nation. Expectations were high for the Spanish team and they did not disappoint: The team was able to win their first gold medal after winning their group stage, defeating long-time rivals Italy in the quarter-finals and lastly Poland in the finals, 3–2.

1996 Summer Olympics

Spain were able to qualify for the following Olympics, managed by then coach Javier Clemente. La Rojita failed to repeat their past success and were eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual runners-up Argentina.

Silver at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Sydney

Spain qualified for their third consecutive tournament in 2000. The squad, managed by head coach Iñaki Sáez, reached their second final but were not able to take gold, losing to Cameroon. Spain had a 2–0 lead at half time but things changed in the second half when an own goal from Iván Amaya (who also missed a penalty), and a goal from Samuel Eto'o five minutes later, levelled the scores at 2–2. The score was unchanged after extra time and the match was decided via penalty shootout, with Spain losing 5–3.

2012 Summer Olympics

After eight years without participation, Spain qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics after winning the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship under head coach Luis Milla. They were scheduled to play against Japan, Morocco and Honduras in the group stage. Before the start of the tournament, Spain scheduled three friendly matches against teams that would be competing at the Olympics: The first was a 3–1 victory over Egypt, followed by a 2–0 defeat against Senegal and a 1–0 victory over Mexico five days later. At the Olympics, Spain was eliminated in the group stage after falling shockingly 1–0 to Japan and a controversial loss to Honduras. This was followed by a 0–0 draw to Morocco, forcing Spain's exit from the tournament at the group stage for the first time, and without scoring a single goal. Luis Milla was sacked from both the under-23 and under-21 teams the following day and replaced by Julen Lopetegui.

Silver at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Tokyo

Spain qualified to the 2020 Olympics after winning the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. Six Spanish players: Unai Simón, Pau Torres, Eric García, Pedri, Mikel Oyarzabal and Dani Olmo who had participated in the UEFA Euro 2020 played a major role for Spain in the 2020 Olympics under coach Luis de la Fuente. La Rojita reached the final, but they lost 2–1 against Brazil after extra time.^[2]

Back to back finalist and Gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics – France

Spain qualified to the 2024 edition of the Olympics as the current U-21 European champions. They entered the competition as one of the heavy favorites to win it. Spain started off their campaign with a 2–1 victory over one of the debutants Uzbekistan, despite a missed Spanish penalty. This was followed by a 3–1 win over the other Olympics debutants Dominican Republic. After securing their place to the quarterfinals, Spain rested some of their key players for the third match against Egypt, which the lost 2–1 thus going to the quarterfinals as the second placed team from their group. In the quarterfinals Spain faced off against the other favorite Japan in what was expected to be a tough match for the Spaniards as Japan had won all their group stage games, and had victory against Argentina (5–2) before the start of the tournament. But this was not to be the case, as the Spaniards ran rampant on their opponents, defeating them 3–0 to advance to the semifinals for a second time in a row. At their semifinal game, they faced Morocco, a team the Spaniards have had somewhat of a problem defeating in recent years and who eliminated Spain in A selection on penalties at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Although they fell behind at half time 1–0 following an opponent's penalty kick, Spain was able to turn the game around, and in dominant fashion defeated their African counterparts 2–1 to advance to their second consecutive final. In the final, they beat hosts France 5-3 after extra time, in a match that has been described by many as the best Olympic finals. Thus after 32 years, Spain was able to win their second gold medal and completing the double after the senior team won the European trophy a month prior.

2024

Spain  v  United States

18 July Training non-competitive game	Spain	0–0	United States	Bordeaux, France
--:-- UTC+2				Stadium: Stade de Bordeaux

Uzbekistan  v  Spain

24 July 2024 Olympic Games GS	Uzbekistan	1–2	Spain	Paris, France
15:00 UTC+2	Shomurodov 45+3'	Report	Pubill 28' Gómez 62'	Stadium: Parc des Princes Attendance: 33,732 Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

Dominican Republic  v  Spain

27 July 2024 Olympic Games GS	Dominican Republic	1–3	Spain	Bordeaux, France
15:00 UTC+2	Ángel Montes 38'	Report	F. López 24' Baena 55' Gutiérrez 70'	Stadium: Stade de Bordeaux Attendance: 16,099 Referee: Adel Al-Naqbi (United Arab Emirates)

Spain  v  Egypt

30 July 2024 Olympic Games GS	Spain	1–2	Egypt	Bordeaux, France
15:00 UTC+2	Omorodion 90'	Report	Ibrahim Adel 40', 62'	Stadium: Stade de Bordeaux Attendance: 12,180 Referee: Drew Fischer (Canada)

Japan  v  Spain

2 August 2024 Olympic Games QF	Japan	0–3	Spain	Décines-Charpieu, France
17:00 UTC+2		Report	F. López 11', 73' Ruiz 86'	Stadium: Stade de Lyon Attendance: 19,111 Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

Morocco  v  Spain

5 August 2024 Olympic Games SF	Morocco	1–2	Spain	Marseille, France
18:00 UTC+2	Rahimi 37' (pen.)	Report	F. López 65' Juanlu 86'	Stadium: Stade de Marseille Attendance: 59,882 Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

France  v  Spain

9 August 2024 Olympic Games Gold	France	3–5 (a.e.t.)	Spain	Paris, France
18:00 UTC+2	Millot 11' Akliouche 79' Mateta 90+3' (pen.)	Report	F. López 18', 25' Baena 28' Camello 100', 120+1'	Stadium: Parc des Princes Attendance: 44,260 Referee: Ramon Abatti (Brazil)

Most capped players

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-23s.

Top goalscorers

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-23s.

• Caps and goals correct as of 5 August 2024.

Current squad

The following players were named to the squad for the 2024 Summer Olympics.^[3]

Caps and goals as of 9 August 2024, after the match against France.

More information No., Pos. ...

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Arnau Tenas	(2001-05-30)30 May 2001 (aged 23)	5	0	Paris Saint-Germain
13	1GK	Joan García	(2001-05-04)4 May 2001 (aged 23)	0	0	Espanyol
22	1GK	Alejandro Iturbe+	(2003-09-02)2 September 2003 (aged 20)	1	0	Atlético Madrid
2	2DF	Marc Pubill	(2003-06-20)20 June 2003 (aged 21)	5	1	Almería
3	2DF	Juan Miranda	(2000-01-19)19 January 2000 (aged 24)	11	0	Bologna
4	2DF	Eric García	(2001-01-09)9 January 2001 (aged 23)	12	0	Barcelona
5	2DF	Pau Cubarsí	(2007-01-22)22 January 2007 (aged 17)	5	0	Barcelona
12	2DF	Jon Pacheco	(2001-01-08)8 January 2001 (aged 23)	4	0	Real Sociedad
15	2DF	Miguel Gutiérrez	(2001-07-27)27 July 2001 (aged 23)	5	1	Girona
19	2DF	Cristhian Mosquera+	(2004-06-27)27 June 2004 (aged 20)	1	0	Arsenal
20	2DF	Juanlu+	(2003-08-15)15 August 2003 (aged 20)	4	1	Sevilla
6	3MF	Pablo Barrios	(2003-06-15)15 June 2003 (aged 21)	6	0	Atlético Madrid
8	3MF	Beñat Turrientes	(2002-01-31)31 January 2002 (aged 22)	6	0	Real Sociedad
10	3MF	Álex Baena*	(2001-07-20)20 July 2001 (aged 23)	5	2	Villarreal
14	3MF	Aimar Oroz	(2001-11-27)27 November 2001 (aged 22)	6	0	Osasuna
16	3MF	Adrián Bernabé	(2001-05-26)26 May 2001 (aged 23)	6	0	Parma
7	4FW	Diego López	(2002-05-13)13 May 2002 (aged 22)	4	0	Valencia
9	4FW	Abel Ruiz	(2000-01-28)28 January 2000 (aged 24)	5	1	Girona
11	4FW	Fermín López*	(2003-05-11)11 May 2003 (aged 21)	6	6	Barcelona
17	4FW	Sergio Gómez	(2000-09-04)4 September 2000 (aged 23)	6	1	Real Sociedad
18	4FW	Samu Aghehowa	(2004-05-05)5 May 2004 (aged 20)	4	1	Porto
21	4FW	Sergio Camello+	(2001-02-10)10 February 2001 (aged 23)	2	2	Rayo Vallecano

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Players who were also called up for Euro 2024 are marked with asterisk (*).

Reserved players, who will play if there is an injured player during the tournament are marked with cross (+).

Overage players in Olympic Games

Olympic Games

Spain has participated in twelve tournaments at the Summer Olympics. In their first ever participation, Spain achieved a silver medal. It would take Spain seventy-two years for them to achieve another medal at the Olympics, when they hosted the tournament in 1992 Summer Olympics. They defeated Poland in the final to win their very first gold medal. Eight years later at the 2000 Summer Olympics, Spain reached the final, losing on penalties to Cameroon. At the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Spain reached their third final, coming so close yet again this time losing 2-1 against Brazil after extra time. At the 2024 Summer Olympics Spain reached a second consecutive, where they faced against the host France, in a very exciting final, Spain defeated the French by a score line of 5-3, winning their second gold medal after 32 years.

More information Olympic Games record, Year ...

Olympic Games record
Year	Host	Round	Pos.	Pld.	W	D	L	GF	GA
1920	Antwerp	Silver medal	2nd	5	4	0	1	9	5
1924	Paris	First round	17th	1	0	0	1	0	1
1928	Amsterdam	Quarter-finals	6th	3	1	1	1	9	9
1936	Berlin	Withdrew
1948	London	Did not qualify
1952	Helsinki
1956	Melbourne
1960	Rome
1964	Tokyo
1968	Mexico City	Quarter-finals	5th	4	2	1	1	4	2
1972	Munich	Did not qualify
1976	Montreal	Group stage	13th	2	0	0	2	1	3
1980	Moscow	Group stage	10th	3	0	3	0	2	2
1984	Los Angeles	Did not qualify
1988	Seoul
1992	Barcelona	Gold medal	1st	6	6	0	0	14	2
1996	Atlanta	Quarter-finals	6th	4	2	1	1	5	7
2000	Sydney	Silver medal	2nd	6	4	1	1	12	6
2004	Athens	Did not qualify
2008	Beijing
2012	London	Group stage	14th	3	0	1	2	0	2
2016	Rio de Janeiro	Did not qualify
2020	Tokyo	Silver medal	2nd	6	3	2	1	9	5
2024	Paris	Gold medal	1st	6	5	0	1	16	8
2028	Los Angeles	To be determined
2032	Brisbane
Total		:2 :3 :0	12/28	49	27	10	12	81	52

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*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

**Since 1968, Spain has sent its under-23 national team.

UEFA European Under-23 Challenge Cup

This was competed for on a basis similar to a boxing title belt. The holders played a randomly chosen opponent for the championship.

Date	Winners	Runners-up	Venue
18 June 1969	Yugoslavia	Spain	Novi Sad, Yugoslavia

UEFA European Under-23 Championship

Mediterranean Games

More information Mediterranean Games record, Year ...

Mediterranean Games record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
2005	Gold medalists	1st	4	3	1	0	9	1
Total	1 Gold medal	1/1	4	3	1	0	9	1

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