Football at the 1981 Maccabiah Games was held in Israel starting on 7 July. The competition was open for men's teams only. A record number of 20 teams took part in the competition. South Africa won their first gold medal, beating USA 3–1 in the final. This was the first time since 1935 that the hosts finished outside the top two. Israel's 1–2 loss to South Africa in the semi-finals was their first loss since 1961, after 24 unbeaten matches (21 wins, 4 draws).