By David Gold
June 26 – Spain, Switzerland and Belarus have all qualified for the football tournament at the London 2012 Olympic Games, following their performances in the European Under-21 Championships.
The trio join hosts Great Britain as the four representatives from Europe in the 16 team tournament.
Spain cruised to a 2-0 win over Switzerland thanks to a goal from Ander Herrera and a brilliantly executed 40 yard free kick from Barcelona youngster Thiago Alcántara to win the European under 21 championship at the weekend.
The win means that Spain are the first team to win the competition whilst also holding the World Cup and European Championship crowns.
As the two finalists, Spain and Switzerland join Great Britain at next summer’s Olympic tournament.
Belarus also qualified after beating the Czech Republic 1-0 in the third place play off with a goal from Igor Filipenko.
The only other confirmed qualifiers to date are Brazil and Uruguay, the two finalists of the Sudamericano under 20 championships, which were held in Peru earlier this year.
The Olympic football tournament is contested by teams made up of players who are 23 or under, though each squad can include up to three players over the age limit.
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