Did you know that Great Britain does not have a soccer team in the Olympics? It might seem surprising, given the country's obsession with the sport, but there's a reason for it.

Great Britain doesn't have a soccer team. Scotland, England, and Wales all do, and those teams compete in the World Cup. The Olympics won't let them compete as separate countries.

They don't WANT to have a combined team. It would take away from the pride of playing from one's own country (this is what I'm told).

I'm currently reading the book The English by Jeremy Paxton. It's supposed to be a look into what it means to be English. They don't have a national anthem. They don't fly their flags in front of their houses (St. George--the white background and red cross, not the Union Jack). Yet there is a fierce belief in not sharing their national soccer team.