[ColoradoTree]

What are the substitution rules in Olympics?  I admit to only knowing that in Euro league, it was traditionally limited to 3 subs/match, which I believe was expanded due to Covid.

Is the "alternate/roster expansion" for Olympics due at all to Covid-related concerns, or just a stand-alone decision to expand all rosters?

I'm pretty sure they're sticking with three substitutions for each game. But you're right, that 3-sub limitation has been expanded elsewhere, but apparently not here--at least not yet. (There was some talk about the 5-sub temporary rule being incorporated in Tokyo, but I haven't seen any official confirmation of that.)

The proponents of the expansion used covid as their primary argument, yes. With the risks one positive case could have for ruling out other players for the tournament, at least temporarily, proponents argued greater flexibility was needed for this tournament, just like how the teams playing in the European championships bumped up from 23 to 26 this year. FIFA has stressed this is a one-time change and we should expect a return to 18-player rosters in 2024, but with 23 being the norm for all other major tournaments, it's never been clear why 18 is some magic number (probably something about the honor of being an Olympian, and only those who will be playing should merit the title, or some such). Just have it be 23 across the board and be done with it.

[ColoradoTree]

What are the substitution rules in Olympics?  I admit to only knowing that in Euro league, it was traditionally limited to 3 subs/match, which I believe was expanded due to Covid.

Is the "alternate/roster expansion" for Olympics due at all to Covid-related concerns, or just a stand-alone decision to expand all rosters?

I'm pretty sure they're sticking with three substitutions for each game. But you're right, that 3-sub limitation has been expanded elsewhere, but apparently not here--at least not yet. (There was some talk about the 5-sub temporary rule being incorporated in Tokyo, but I haven't seen any official confirmation of that.)

The proponents of the expansion used covid as their primary argument, yes. With the risks one positive case could have for ruling out other players for the tournament, at least temporarily, proponents argued greater flexibility was needed for this tournament, just like how the teams playing in the European championships bumped up from 23 to 26 this year. FIFA has stressed this is a one-time change and we should expect a return to 18-player rosters in 2024, but with 23 being the norm for all other major tournaments, it's never been clear why 18 is some magic number (probably something about the honor of being an Olympian, and only those who will be playing should merit the title, or some such). Just have it be 23 across the board and be done with it.