UEFA European Championship

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

UEFA European Championship
The European Championship trophy
Organising bodyUEFA
Founded1958; 66 years ago (1958)
RegionEurope
Number of teams24 (finals)
55 (eligible to enter qualification)
Qualifier forCONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
Current champions Italy (2nd title)
Most successful team(s) Germany
 Spain
(3 titles each)
Websiteuefa.com/uefaeuro
UEFA Euro 2024

The UEFA European Football Championship,

continental champion of Europe. It is the second-most watched football tournament in the world after the FIFA World Cup; the Euro 2016 final was watched by a global audience of around 600 million.[2] The competition has been held every four years since 1960, except for 2020, when it was postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, but kept the name Euro 2020. Scheduled to be in the even-numbered year between FIFA World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the European Nations' Cup before changing to its current name in 1968
. Since 1996, the individual events have been branded as "UEFA Euro [year]".

Before entering the tournament, all teams other than the host nations (which qualify automatically) compete in a qualifying process. Until 2016, the championship winners could compete in the following year's FIFA Confederations Cup, but were not obliged to do so.[3] From the 2020 edition onwards, the winner competes in the CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions.

The sixteen European Championship tournaments have been won by ten national teams: Germany and Spain have each won three titles, Italy and France have won two titles, and the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, the Netherlands, Denmark, Greece and Portugal have won one title each. To date, Spain is the only team to have won consecutive titles, doing so in 2008 and 2012.

The

History

Beginnings

Regional tournaments for national teams existed before the advent of a truly pan-European competition. Starting in 1883, the

Spain held the next tournament in 1964, which saw an increase in entries to the qualification tournament, with 29 entering;[12] West Germany was a notable absentee once again and Greece withdrew after being drawn against Albania, with whom they were still at war.[13] The hosts beat the title holders, the Soviet Union, 2–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.[14]

The tournament format stayed the same for the

coin toss (the semi-final between Italy and the Soviet Union)[17] and the final went to a replay, after the match against Yugoslavia finished 1–1.[18] Italy won the replay 2–0.[19] More teams entered this tournament (31), a testament to its burgeoning popularity.[20]

Belgium hosted the

Heysel Stadium in Brussels.[21] This tournament would provide a taste of things to come, as the German side contained many of the key members of the 1974 FIFA World Cup Champions.[22][23]

The 1976 tournament in Yugoslavia was the last in which only four teams took part in the final tournament, and the last in which the hosts had to qualify. Czechoslovakia beat West Germany in the newly introduced penalty shootout. After seven successful conversions, Uli Hoeneß missed, leaving Czechoslovakian Antonín Panenka with the opportunity to score and win the tournament. An "audacious" chipped shot,[24] described by UEFA as "perhaps the most famous spot kick of all time" secured the victory as Czechoslovakia won 5–3 on penalties.[25]

Expansion to 8 teams

The competition was expanded to eight teams in the 1980 tournament, again hosted by Italy. It involved a group stage, with the winners of the groups going on to contest the final, and the runners-up playing in the third place play-off.[26] West Germany won their second European title by beating Belgium 2–1, with two goals scored by Horst Hrubesch at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.[27] Horst Hrubesch scored early in the first half before René Vandereycken equalised for Belgium with a penalty in the second half. With two minutes remaining, Hrubesch headed the winner for West Germany from a Karl-Heinz Rummenigge corner.[28]

third place play-off was also abolished.[31]

Ruud Gullit and the Netherlands team celebrating their victory in 1988

West Germany hosted

Olympia Stadion in Munich.[34] Marco van Basten scored the second goal, a volley over the keeper from the right wing which is often considered one of the best goals ever scored.[35]

UEFA Euro 1992 was held in Sweden, and was won by Denmark, who were only in the finals after UN sanctions prevented Yugoslavia's participation as some of the states constituting the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were at war with each other.[36][37] The Danes beat holders the Netherlands on penalties in the semi-finals,[38] then defeated world champion Germany 2–0.[39] This was the first tournament in which a unified Germany took part and also the first major tournament to have the players' names printed on their backs.

Expansion to 16 teams

England hosted

Final 2–1 thanks to the first golden goal ever in a major tournament, scored by Oliver Bierhoff five minutes into extra time.[42][43]
This was Germany's first title as a unified nation.

UEFA Euro 2000 was the first tournament to be held by two countries, in the Netherlands and Belgium.[44] France, the reigning World Cup champions, were favoured to win, and they lived up to expectations when they beat Italy 2–1 after extra time, having come from being 1–0 down: Sylvain Wiltord equalised in the last minute of regular time and David Trezeguet scored the winning golden goal in extra time.[45]

The UEFA Euro 2004 opening ceremony in Portugal.

silver goal,[48][49]
a rule which replaced the previous golden goal in 2003, before being abolished itself shortly after this tournament.

The

Ernst Happel Stadion in Vienna.[52] Spain defeated Germany 1–0, with a goal scored by Fernando Torres in the 33rd minute, sparking much celebration across the country.[53] This was their first title since the 1964 tournament. Spain were the highest scoring team with 12 goals scored and David Villa finished as the top scorer with four goals. Xavi was awarded the player of the tournament, and nine Spanish players were picked for the team of the tournament
.

The

Final, thus becoming the first nation to defend a European Championship title, as well as the first European team to win three consecutive major tournaments.[55] In scoring the third goal of the final, Torres became the first player to score in two European Championship finals. He was equal top scorer for the tournament with three goals in total, along with Mario Balotelli, Alan Dzagoev, Mario Gómez, Mario Mandžukić, and Cristiano Ronaldo, despite only being used as a substitute player. The tournament was otherwise notable for having the most headed goals in a Euro tournament (26 out of 76 goals in total); a disallowed goal in the England versus Ukraine group game which replays showed had crossed the goal line, and which prompted President of FIFA Sepp Blatter to tweet, "GLT (Goal-line technology) is no longer an alternative but a necessity",[56]
thus reversing his long-held reluctance to embrace such technology; and some crowd violence in group games.

Expansion to 24 teams

In 2007, the

Final, thanks to a goal from Eder
in the 109th minute. Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal's world-renowned striker, came out of the game due to injury in the 25th minute. This was the first time Portugal won a major tournament.

For the

Final, Italy defeated maiden finalists England 3–2 on penalties, after the game was tied 1–1 after extra time, to win their second European Championship.[72]

Trophy

The trophy on display in 2021

The Henri Delaunay Trophy, which is awarded to the winner of the European Championship, is named in honour of Henri Delaunay, the first General Secretary of UEFA, who came up with the idea of a European championship but died five years before the first tournament in 1960. His son Pierre was in charge of creating the trophy.[73] Since the first tournament it has been awarded to the winning team for them to keep for four years, until the next tournament. This trophy bore the words Coupe d'Europe ("European Cup"), Coupe Henri Delaunay ("Henri Delaunay Cup"), and Championnat d'Europe ("European Championship") on the front and a juggling boy on the back.

For the 2008 tournament, the Henri Delaunay Trophy was remodelled to make it larger, as the old trophy was overshadowed by UEFA's other trophies such as the new European Champion Clubs' Cup. The new trophy, which is made of sterling silver, now weighs 8 kilograms (18 lb) and is 60 centimetres (24 in) tall, being 2 kilograms (4.4 lb) heavier and 18 centimetres (7.1 in) longer than the old one. The marble plinth that was serving as base was removed. The new silver base of the trophy had to be enlarged to make it stable. The names of the winning countries that had appeared on the plaques glued to the plinth are now engraved on the back of the trophy,[74] under the word Coupe Henri Delaunay and are written in English rather than French its predecessor had. The 1972 and 1980 winning country, West Germany, is written as just Germany.[citation needed] Since 2016, the juggling boy was returned on the trophy's back.

The players and coaches of the winning team and the runner-up team are awarded gold and silver medals, respectively. Each association that competes in the final tournament receives a commemorative plaque. Each time the team losing semi-finalist, as well as each finalist, receive a dedicated plaque. Though there is no longer a

third place play-off, UEFA decided in the 2008 edition to award the semi-final losers (Turkey and Russia) bronze medals for the first time,[75] and did the same in the 2012 edition when Germany and Portugal received bronze medals.[76] However, UEFA decided that losing semi-finalists would no longer receive medals from the 2016 edition onwards.[77]
Bronze medals were previously awarded for winners of the third place play-off, the last of which was held in 1980.

Format

The competition

Before 1980, only four teams qualified for the final tournament. From 1980, eight teams competed. In 1996 the tournament expanded to 16 teams, since it was easier for European nations to qualify for the World Cup than their own continental championship; 14 of the 24 teams at the 1982, 1986 and 1990 World Cups had been European, whereas the European Championship finals still involved only eight teams.

In 2007, there was much discussion about an expansion of the tournament to 24 teams, started by Scotland and the Republic of Ireland, due to the increased number of football associations in Europe after the break-ups of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union, and the inclusion of Israel and Kazakhstan. The new president of UEFA, Michel Platini, was reported to be in favour of expansion which proved an accurate assumption. Whilst on 17 April 2007, UEFA's executive committee formally decided against expansion in 2012, Platini indicated in June 2008 that UEFA will increase participation from 16 to 24 teams in future tournaments, starting from 2016.[78] On 25 September, it was announced by Franz Beckenbauer that an agreement had been reached, and the expansion to 24 teams would be officially announced the next day.[79]

The competing teams are chosen by a series of qualifying games: in 1960 and 1964 through home and away play-offs; from 1968 through a combination of both qualifying groups and play-off games. The host country was selected from the four finalists after they were determined through qualifying.

Since the expansion of the final tournament starting from 1980, the host country, or countries, have been chosen beforehand and qualify automatically.

In most tournaments, the tournament consists of a

single-elimination
knockout stage.

No. Year Host Teams Matches Round 1 Final stages
1 1960  France 4 4 knockout: 4 matches (not counting replays)
2 1964  Spain
3 1968  Italy 5
4 1972  Belgium 4 knockout: 4 matches
5 1976  Yugoslavia
6 1980  Italy 8 14 2 groups of 4 teams: 12 matches final (round 1 group winners) and third-place match (round 1 group runners-up)
7 1984  France 15 knockout of 4 teams (round 1 group winners and runners-up): 3 matches
8 1988  West Germany
9 1992  Sweden
10 1996  England 16 31 4 groups of 4 teams: 24 matches knockout of 8 teams (round 1 group winners and runners-up): 7 matches
11 2000  Belgium
 Netherlands
12 2004  Portugal
13 2008  Austria
  Switzerland
14 2012  Poland
 Ukraine
15 2016  France 24 51 6 groups of 4 teams: 36 matches knockout of 16 teams (round 1 group winners and runners-up, plus four best third-placed teams): 15 matches
16 2020[s 1]  Europe[s 2]
17 2024  Germany
18 2028  England
 Northern Ireland
 Republic of Ireland
 Scotland
 Wales
19 2032  Italy
 Turkey
  1. ^ Postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe
  2. ^ Pan–European edition hosted by eleven countries: Azerbaijan, Denmark, England, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Russia, Scotland and Spain

Up to 1968 draws were to be broken via a coin toss in all matches but the final, draw in final match was resolved via a replay.

No third place play-off has been played since 1980.

Qualifying

To qualify, a team must finish in one of the direct qualifying spots or win a play-off. After this, a team proceeds to the finals round in the host country, although hosts qualify for the tournament automatically. The qualifying phase begins in the autumn after the preceding FIFA World Cup, almost two years before the finals.

The groups for qualification are drawn by a UEFA committee using seeding. Seeded teams include reigning champions and other teams based on their performance in the preceding FIFA World Cup qualifying and the last European Championship qualifying. To obtain an accurate view of the teams' abilities, a ranking is produced. This is calculated by taking the total number of points won by a particular team and dividing it by the number of games played, i.e. points per game. In the case of a team having hosted one of the two previous competitions and therefore having qualified automatically, only the results from the single most recent qualifying competition are used. If two teams have equal points per game, the committee then bases their positions in the rankings on:

  1. Coefficient from the matches played in its most recent qualifying competition.
  2. Average goal difference.
  3. Average number of goals scored.
  4. Average number of away goals scored.
  5. Drawing of lots.

The qualifying phase is played in a group format, the composition of the groups is determined through means of a draw of teams from pre-defined seeded bowls. The draw takes place after the preceding World Cup's qualifying competition. For UEFA Euro 2020, the group qualifying phase consisted of ten groups; five of six teams and the remainder of five teams each.

Each group is played in a league format with teams playing each other home and away. The top two teams then qualified for the final tournament, with remaining places decided by playoffs depending on their ranking in the UEFA Nations League. As with most leagues, the points are awarded as three for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. In the eventuality of one or more teams having equal points after all matches have been played, the following criteria are used to distinguish the sides:

  1. Higher number of points obtained in the group matches played among the teams in question.
  2. Superior goal difference from the group matches played among the teams in question.
  3. Higher number of goals scored in the group matches played among the teams in question.
  4. Higher number of goals scored away from home in the group matches played among the teams in question.
  5. Results of all group matches:
    1. Superior goal difference
    2. Higher number of goals scored
    3. Higher number of goals scored away from home
    4. Fair play conduct.
  6. Drawing of lots.

Final tournament

Map of countries' best results. 10 countries have won, counting Germany and West Germany as one

Sixteen teams progressed to the final tournament for the 2012 tournament. They were joint hosts Poland and Ukraine, the winners and the highest ranked second-placed team from the nine qualifying groups as well as the winners of four play-off matches between the runners-up of the other groups. These sixteen teams were divided equally into four groups, A, B, C and D, each consisting of four teams. The groups were drawn up by the UEFA administration, again using seeding. The seeded teams being the host nations, the reigning champions, should they qualify, and those with the best points per game coefficients over the qualifying phase of the tournament and the previous World Cup qualifying. Other finalists were assigned to by means of a draw, using coefficients as a basis.

For the 2016 tournament, the expansion to 24 teams means that the teams will be drawn into six groups of four, with the six group winners, six group runners-up and the four best third-placed teams advancing to the round of 16 when it becomes a knockout competition.[77]

The groups are again played in a league format, where a team plays its opponents once each. The same points system is used (three points for a win, one point for a draw, no points for a defeat). A schedule for the group matches will be drawn up, but the last two matches in a group must kick off simultaneously. The winner and runner-up of each group progress to the next round, where a knockout system is used (the two teams play each other once, the winner progresses), this is used in all subsequent rounds as well. The winners of the quarter-finals matches progress to the semi-finals, where the winners play in the final. If in any of the knockout rounds, the scores are still equal after normal playing time, extra time and penalties are employed to separate the two teams. Unlike the FIFA World Cup, this tournament no longer has a third place playoff.

Results

Year Host Final Third place playoff Number of teams
Winners Score Runners-up Third place Score Fourth place
1960  France
Soviet Union
a.e.t.
)

Yugoslavia

Czechoslovakia
2–0
France
4
1964  Spain
Spain
2–1
Soviet Union

Hungary
3–1 (
a.e.t.
)

Denmark
4
1968  Italy
Italy
a.e.t.)
2–0 (replay
)

Yugoslavia

England
2–0
Soviet Union
4
1972  Belgium
West Germany
3–0
Soviet Union

Belgium
2–1
Hungary
4
1976  Yugoslavia
Czechoslovakia
a.e.t.)
(5–3 p
)

West Germany

Netherlands
3–2 (
a.e.t.
)

Yugoslavia
4
1980  Italy
West Germany
2–1
Belgium

Czechoslovakia
1–1 [a]
(9–8 p)

Italy
8
Losing semi-finalists[b]
1984  France
France
2–0
Spain
 Denmark and  Portugal 8
1988  West Germany
Netherlands
2–0
Soviet Union
 Italy and  West Germany 8
1992  Sweden
Denmark
2–0

Germany
 Netherlands and  Sweden 8
1996  England
Germany
g.g.
)

Czech Republic
 England and  France 16
2000  Belgium
 Netherlands

France
g.g.
)

Italy
 Netherlands and  Portugal 16
2004  Portugal
Greece
1–0
Portugal
 Czech Republic and  Netherlands 16
2008  Austria
  Switzerland

Spain
1–0
Germany
 Russia and  Turkey 16
2012  Poland
 Ukraine

Spain
4–0
Italy
 Germany and  Portugal 16
2016  France
Portugal
a.e.t.
)

France
 Germany and  Wales 24
2020[c]  Europe[d]
Italy
a.e.t.)
(3–2 p
)

England
 Denmark and  Spain 24
2024  Germany 24
2028  England
 Northern Ireland
 Republic of Ireland
 Scotland
 Wales
24
2032  Italy
 Turkey
24

Notes

  1. ^ No extra time was played.
  2. ^ No third place play-off has been played since 1980; losing semi-finalists are listed in alphabetical order.
  3. ^ Postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.
  4. ^ Pan–European edition hosted by eleven countries: Azerbaijan, Denmark, England, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Romania, Russia, Scotland and Spain.

Summary

Map of winners
Team Winners Runners-up
 Germany1 3 (1972, 1980, 1996) 3 (1976, 1992, 2008)
 Spain 3 (1964*, 2008, 2012) 1 (1984)
 Italy 2 (1968*, 2020*) 2 (2000, 2012)
 France 2 (1984*, 2000) 1 (2016*)
 Russia2 1 (1960) 3 (1964, 1972, 1988)
 Czech Republic3 1 (1976) 1 (1996)
 Portugal 1 (2016) 1 (2004*)
 Netherlands 1 (1988)
 Denmark 1 (1992)
 Greece 1 (2004)
 Serbia4 2 (1960, 1968)
 Belgium 1 (1980)
 England 1 (2020*)
* hosts
1 named West Germany until 1990
2 includes results representing the Soviet Union
3 includes results representing Czechoslovakia
4 includes results representing Yugoslavia

Records and statistics

Awards

There are currently five post-tournament awards, and one given during the tournament:[80]

  • Player of the Tournament award for the best player, first awarded in 1996.
  • Top Scorer award (currently named Alipay Top Scorer award for sponsorship reasons) for the most prolific goal scorer.
  • Young Player of the Tournament (currently named SOCAR Young Player of the Tournament for sponsorship reasons) for the best player under the age of 21, first awarded in 2016.
  • Man of the Match award for outstanding performance during each game of the tournament, first awarded in 1996.
  • Team of the Tournament award for the best combined team of players in the tournament.

See also

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External links