History of the Championship

Idea

The first Championship of Europe took place in 1960 in France. The historic, first goal in qualifying rounds was scored by Anatolij Iljin in the fourth minute of a USSR – Hungary match (3-1) on the Luzniki Stadium in Moscow, filled by more than 100 thousands of spectators.

The idea behind tournaments was first announced in 1927 at a congress of the International Football Federation (FIFA), by the General Secretary of the French Football Federation Henri Delaunay. However, the idea could not yet be brought to existence at that time. It was successfully realised in 1960, when the tournament was given a name in memory of the author of the project – namely, the Europe Nations Cup – or Henri Delaunay Cup. After two editions, in 1968 the name of the competition was abridged to the today known European Championships.

By year 1976 only 4 teams were promoted to the final round, which number was increased to 8 between 1980 – 1992, and to 16 - from 1996. Since the Italian championships in 1980 the host automatically qualifies to the final round.

1960 France

In 1960 UEFA distributed invitations to all countries of Europe, but the response was poor. The British were not particularly attracted to take part in the global or European competition. The World Champion of 1954 – West Germany, as well as Italy – another power of European football also showed little enthusiasm.

As a result, 17 national teams were gathered, willing to play in the qualification rounds. These matches, as well as the 1/8 finale meetings, were played in the players’ countries. The cup format was adopted.

Franco surrenders his team
Unfortunately, the politics took its toll on the organisers and players. Spain, governed by General Franco, was excluded from the tournament after it refused to play the USSR team. In this way, a walk over of USSR let it get to the semi-final rounds without fighting.

4 teams in the final tournament
In 1960 on the football fields of France, since the semi-final phase the competition was entered by teams representing hosts, Jugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and the USSR. In the fierce fight to qualify for the final rounds France lost to Jugoslavia 4-5, although earlier it led 3-1 and 4-2. In the second semi-final the Soviet Union, whose team included such football legends as Lew Jaszyn, the goalkeeper, Igor Netto the full-back, Walentin Iwanow and Wiktor Poniedielnik, confidently defeated the national team of Czechoslovakia 3-0. The match for the title of the best team of the Old Continent, played on the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, was an interesting and exciting performance. The Yugoslav goal scorer, Milan Galic got the red card, which was cashed in on by the representatives of Soviet Union, winning 2-1 after the play-off and becoming the first Champions of Europe in the history of football.

The third place was taken by Czechoslovakia winning 2:0 with France.

The Best Goal Scorers Of the Tournament
Heutte (France), Ivanow (USSR), Ponedelnik (USSR), Galić (Yugoslavia) and Jerković (Yugoslavia). All of them defeated the rival goal-keepers twice.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1960: USSR
Vice-champion: Yugoslavia
IIIrd place: Czechoslovakia
IVth place: France

The national team of Poland was rejected in the qualification rounds, losing to Spain. A momentous event of that championship was when the legendary Alfredo di Stefano came to Warsaw.

1964 Spain

The second edition of the Nations Cup attracted more teams than its predecessor. This time the competition was joined by the national teams of England and Italy. Unfortunately, World’s Champions of 1954, West Germany, failed to join the competition for the second time in a row. Also the national teams of Scotland, Finland and Cyprus failed to participate. 29 national teams played in the qualification rounds.

Politics Once Again
In Spain, as well as previously in France, not all disputable issues were resolved by players. Greece decided to pull out from the games after drawing a lot, which required it to play Albania – a country which had been at war with Greece for 50 years.

The Game Continues
By the semi-finals the teams played using the match – return match system: alternately, at home and away. The English dropped out just after the initial two matches with France. Italy – another favourite of the event – also dropped out in the first round, defeated by the successful defendants of the European Champion title, the Soviet Union. Promotion to the main tournament, played on the stadiums of Spain, was won by 4 national teams: of Denmark, Spain, Hungary and USSR.

As predicted, the Soviet Union smashed Denmark 3-0. The second semi-final was much more fierce. Finally, after the play-off the Spanish eliminated the Hungarians by winning 2-1. The final round on the Madrid Santiago Bernabeu stadium, between the teams of Spain and USSR, had an additional “scent”. Everyone remembered that 4 years ago, during the previous championships, General Franco ordered its national team to refuse to play a match with the Soviet team, which caused expulsion of Spain from the competition. This time more than 120 thousands of spectators gathered on the Madrid stands were able to watch a marvellous game. A master strategist, Luis Suarez the full-back, led the hosts to a victory 2:1. The decisive goal was scored by the Spanish in the 84-th minute.

In the game for the 3rd place Hungary defeated Denmark 3-1.

A Golden Football For the Goal-Keeper
On the eve of the final match, the Russian goal-keeper Lew Jaszyn was handed the "Golden Football" – an award of the "France - Football" weekly for the best football player of Europe in 1963. He is the only Russian player to whom this prestigious prize was awarded. Jaszyn is also the only goal-keeper on the list of winners of this prize, which has been awarded every year since 1956.

Tournament’s Best Scorers
Scorers of 2 goals: Jesus Maria Pereda (Spain), Ferenc Beea (Hungary) and Deso Novak (Hungary).

The Results
Champion of Europe 1964: Spain
Vice-champion: The USSR
IIIrd place: Hungary
IVth place: Denmark

The Polish national team dropped out in the first qualification round, after two defeats with Northern Ireland.

1968 Italy

Two important changes were made in organisation of the Italian tournament. First: the new name – European Nations Cup was replaced by the today well known European Championships. Second: group qualifying rounds were introduced, in which 8 national teams were to qualify. One of 8 groups was assigned to each of 31 teams, which played a match and a return match. 2 best teams from each group were promoted to 1/8 final. The winners of their pairs of matches travelled to Italy.

The lucky winners of the qualification rounds became the British team of world champions from 1966 (who eliminated the Spanish Champions of Europe from 4 years ago), Italians, Yugoslavians and representatives of the Soviet Union. A sensation of the group qualifications was the drop-out of the West Germans who played this championship for the first time, after an exciting draw with Albania. The semi-final pairs were made up by: Yugoslavia with Britain and Italy with the Soviet Union.

A decisive toss of a coin
The winners of the first pair were the Yugoslavs, who defeated the British World Champions 1-0. Their final opponent was chosen by blind fate. The match Italy vs. USSR, played for 120 minutes, failed to decide on the runners-up. A toss of the coin brought luck to the Italians. The final match was one of the most controversial meetings in the history of football. The weaker performing Yugoslavs managed, however, to defeat Dino Zoff once. It was not until the last minute of the match when a questionable goal scored by Italians, brought them the desired draw. Angelo Domenghini did not wait for a whistle from the Swiss referee Gottfried Dienst to execute a free kick. The goal was scored. However, a correct hit by the Yugoslavs was not scored. The match ended with a draw, and therefore a repeated meeting was scheduled two days later. This match ended 2-0 and gave the European Championship of ’68 to Italy.

The third team of the Old Continent became the national team of Britain, after it defeated USSR 2-0.

The Best Scorer Of the Tournament
Dzajić (Yugoslavia), who scored 2 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1968: Italy
Vice-champion: Yugoslavia
IIIrd place: Britain
IVth place: USSR

The Poles dropped out in the group rounds, taking third place behind the French and the Belgians.

1972 Belgium

The fate ordained that two football powers: Britain and West Germany got to one qualifying group. The amazing Gerd Muller led the Germans to victory 3-1 on the Wembley stadium filled with 100 thousands of spectators. After a 0-0 draw in the return match, the German team got to the Belgian semi-finals. There they encountered the Belgians, who previously surprisingly eliminated the Italians, beating them in Brussels 2-1. The four were joined by Hungarians, eliminating Romanians and the USSR, which beat the national team of Yugoslavia. The Soviet players, although not favourites, beat the Hungarians 1-0 in the semi-final and met the West-German team in the final match. This was possible after two hits of Gerd Muller, which “dispatched” the Belgian hosts of the tournament, giving the Germans a winning score 2-1.

Thus, the national teams of Germany and USSR met in the Brussels final. This time the great Gerd Muller gave a show of his talents, by scoring two goals. Another lucky scorer was Wimmer, who got 3-0 and for the fourth time the European Champion title went to West Germany.

The third place, after an unexpected win 2-1 over the Hungarians, was taken by Belgium.

Penalty Kicks Replace Tosses Of a Coin
Before the qualifying rounds for ’72 championships kicked off, UEFA made an important decision regarding determination of winners in the play-off system. From then on, unless a pair or matches with play-offs showed the winner, the referee ordered a series of penalty kicks. This decision was dictated primarily by an absurd situation in 1968, when a toss of a coin indicated the Italians as winners of the semi-final match with the USSR team.

They Changed Coaches More Often Than Clothes
Interesting personal changes took place in the training staff of the national team of USSR. During the qualifying rounds the team coach was Valentin Nikolajev, during preparations for quarter-final games with Yugoslavia the team was trained by Nikolai Guliajew, but on the journey to Belgium the coach was Aleksandr Ponomariew, who then suffered the critics from his superiors for a defeat in the final.

The Best Scorer Of the Tournament
Gerd Muller (RFN) – 4 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1972: RFN
Vice-champion: USSR
IIIrd place: Belgium
IVth place: Hungary

The Polish team was beaten by the Germans and dropped out in the qualification rounds.

1976 Yugoslavia

The European Championships in Yugoslavia were the last event, whose final round was played by four teams. This was also the last tournament, when the host was bound to take part in qualifying rounds. The latter were played by 8 groups of 4 teams each. Matches were played by each team with all others within its group. Only the winner of his group was promoted to further games, that is, quarterfinals.

A sensation was the drop-out of Britain, which was beaten by Czechoslovakia in the qualifying games. As turned out later, this was not the only sensation on offer from this national team.

In the quarterfinals the Czech beat the USSR team of vice-champions of Europe. And, all of a sudden, in ½ finale, after a play-off, they dispatched Holland famous of its Cruyff and Neeskens by scoring 3-1. The second semi-final was the meeting-place of the national teams from the Federal Republic of Germany and Yugoslavia. All hoped for a replay of the World Championship final of 1976, in which the Orange were beaten by the Germans. Johan Cruyff dreamt about a return game… And the Germans actually made their way to the finale, by beating the Yugoslavs 4-2 in a play-off, despite losing 0-2 after the first half. A hat-trick was played by Dieter Muller – a debutante in the German team.

The final game of the fifth tournament for the European Championship was played by the national teams of Czechoslovakia and Federal Republic of Germany. After the first half the Czechoslovaks led 2-1 and it was not until the 90th minute when Bernd Holzenbein cashed in on a mistake of Ivo Viktor, the goal-keeper, and a play-off was ordered. However, it bore no fruit and for the first time in the final match the winner was to be selected by penalty kicks. The goal which decided the win was scored by Antonin Panenka who beat Sepp Maier - one of the best goal-keepers of the seventies. After his dribbling, the great Maier made a jump, and the ball slowly hovered towards the middle of the goal. The score 5-3 gave Czechoslovakia the first title of European Champions in the history.

Holland comforted itself by beating the Yugoslav team 3-2, after a play-off, in a match for the third place.

Longer Than 90 Minutes
A distinguishing feature of the Yugoslavian tournament was that each of its matches lasted more than 90 minutes.

The Best Scorer Of the Tournament
Dieter Muller (Federal Republic of Germany) with 4 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1972: Czechoslovakia
Vice-champion: Federal Republic of Germany
IIIrd place: Holland
IVth place: Yugoslavia

Poland was close to a promotion from the qualifying rounds, but lost with Holland “by a hairbreadth” due to worse ratio of goals scored.

1980 Italy

The organisation of the European Championships, which were played on the Apenine Peninsula for the second time, was changed one more time. After the qualifying rounds – instead of 4 teams – 8 of them were promoted to the final tournament. The teams were divided into 2 groups, 4 teams in each. The winners from both groups met in Rome for the final game. For the first time the host of the tournament did not stand for the qualifying rounds.

The Death Group
The first of the two groups seemed like "the death group". It was formed of the World Champions – Germans, Czechoslovak Champions of Europe, the Dutch who got to the final Mundial games twice, and the Greeks. The second, weaker group was made up of players from Italy, Belgium, Spain and Britain. Out of this four, the Belgians won a sensational promotion to the great final. In the "death group" everything was to be decided by the momentous match of the Germans and the Orange team. The West Germans played their best football since the World’s Championships ’74. After 65 minutes of the game and three hits by Klaus Allofs, it led 3-0. The Dutch were desperately trying to reverse their destiny, but could find time and strength to score only two goals. The final game at Stadio Olimpico in Rome saw two great shots by Horst Hrubesch (the second just before the end of the match), which gave the German team a win over Belgium 2-1 and the title of European Champions.

The game for the third place, between Czechoslovakia and Italy, was won by Czechoslovakia 9-8 after penalty shots (1-1).

The Italian affair
Shortly before the Championships of the Continent the Italian football world was shaken by a great scandal. Many club members and players, including such stars as Paolo Rossi and Giordano Bruno, were accused of taking part in a swindle of illegal football pools. The coach Enzo Bearzot found himself in an uncomfortable situation. In a famous court trial more than thirty players were sentenced. Rossi was disqualified for two years, while Giordano – for three. The distinguished team of AC Milan, together with the Roman Lazio, were relegated to Serie B.

A Debut of Hooligans
These championships also saw the first "performances" given on the European continent by English hooligans. Before and during the England vs. Belgium match in Turin they demolished shops and cafeterias, injuring several policemen. Many vandals were arrested. Italian policemen were forced to use tear gas at the stadium – the bludgeons alone did not help. The wind carried clouds of gas from the stands to the football pitch and nothing could be done but to stop the match. Help was offered to players as well as referees. UEFA imposed a fine of… 13 thousand Swiss Francs upon the English Football Federation.

The Best Scorer of the Tournament
Klaus Allofs (Federal Republic of Germany), who scored 3 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1980: Federal Republic of Germany
Vice-champion: Belgium
IIIrd place: Czechoslovakia
IVth place: Italy

Again the Poles lost to the Dutch in the qualification rounds.

1984 France

The final tournament in France, as well as that played 4 years earlier in Italy, was played by 8 national teams. This time, however, each group promoted 2 teams for the further games.

France qualified automatically as the tournament’s host. Surprisingly, the British dropped out in the qualifying rounds, following a defeat with the Danish at the Wembley stadium. One of the favourites was the strong team of the hosts, semi-finalists of the Mundial ’82 in Spain. And indeed, the Three-coloured team headed by Michel Platini - an ingenious striker and playmaker rolled into one, lost to nobody and Platini himself scored as many as 7 goals.

A Sensation Was Also Felt by Quasi-Spectators
The greatest sensation of that tournament was the dropout of the Champions of Europe – West Germans, in the group qualifying phase. The Spanish players brought them to despair by scoring the one and only, decisive goal in the 90th minute of the match. After that failure the German quasi-spectators gave a pitiful performance by demolishing the Parc des Princes stadium.

A Genius From France
The semi-final game of the national teams of Portugal and France was a fantastic show. After the first half the Three-coloured led 1-0 following a goal scored by the defender Domereque. When teams changed sides, the resolutely striking Portuguese players managed to equalise the score after a shot by Jordao. In the playoff the same player brought his team a leading position 2-1. On that day, the Domerque’s extraordinary scorer’s instinct brought a draw to the French in 114th minute, and it was just seconds before the final whistle of the referee, when the marvellous Platini gave another show by scoring a decisive goal, which determined the final score at 3-2 for the Three-coloured.

In the second semi-final, following penalty kicks, Spain beat Denmark 5-4. However, in the final game it failed to come up to the dashing, beautifully playing French team, losing in the Paris Princes’ Park 0-2. A marvellous goal of Platini, scored from a free kick, was his ninth hit in the tournament. He was unbeaten in the scorers’ qualification and his wins included two hat-tricks. Michel Platini dominated this tournament in an unmatched way.

Since that tournament no match for third place has been played.

An Overwhelming Win
It is worthwhile to mention unusual circumstances, in which the Spanish team was promoted to the final tournament. Also, in the last match of the qualifying rounds, with Malta, they needed a win by 11 goals. They won… 12-1.

The Best Scorer of the Tournament
Michel Platini – 9 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1984: France
Vice-champion: Spain
IIIrd place: Denmark/Portugal

The Poles gave another disappointing performance in the qualifying rounds, taking third place in their group, behind Portugal and USSR.

1988 The FRG

40 teams took part in the games qualifying to the main tournament, which were divided into 7 groups. Only the group’s winner was promoted to the final game.

The West Germans automatically found themselves among the eight best European teams and were confident favourites until their final success. The team, led by Franz Beckenbauer, included such players as Klinsmann, Kohler and Voller. Other strong teams were the Italians headed by Maldini, Mancini and Vialli, the USSR with Dassajev and Protassov, and England with Linker.

Promotions to quarter-finals were won by the Soviet Union and Holland as well as the Federal Republic of Germany and Italy. A sensation was the disastrous performance of the British national team, which took the last place in its group, and was beaten by all.

If the Penalty Kick Had Been a Success…
In the semi-final games first the Orange, after goals scored by rising stars – Koeman and Van Basten, beat the Germans 2-0, and then the USSR team “dispatched” Italians 2-1. The final game between Holland and USSR was a replay of the group match. Earlier the USSR won 1-0. This time the tulip country team repaid its debts. Marvellous performance shown by the new, great generation of Dutch players; the goal scored by Ruud Gullit, and in particular the excellent goal of Marco van Basten, qualified as one of the most beautiful kicks in the history of EURO, gave them a win 2-0 and the first Championship of Europe. However, if Igor Biełanov had made a good use of his penalty kick in the 73rd minute of the match…

Also the Portuguese Go On Strike
An interesting story, to which virtually no precedent exists in the history of football, is bound with the Portuguese team. It started back in 1986, before the World’s Championship in Mexico, when the Portuguese national team went on strike, hoping to have their remunerations for the Mexican tournament increased. If their demands had not been met, they threatened to refuse to go to Mexico. The Portuguese federation acceded to the demands of players, who, however, suffered an ignominious defeat in Mexico, taking the last place in their group, and beaten by everyone including Morocco – 1:3. On that account 8 of 22 members of the team playing on the tournament were disqualified for life. Other Portuguese players refused to play in the national team to declare their support for their humiliated colleagues. The total number of strikers grew to 137 and the qualification for the European Championships 1988 was lost ignominiously by that national team, although at last the football powers announced amnesty for both the disqualified, as well as those who refused to play.

The Best Scorer Of the Tournament
Marco van Basten (Holland) - 5 goals

The Results
Champion of Europe 1988: Holland
Vice-champion: USSR
IIIrd place: Federal Republic of Germany/Italy

In the Polish qualifying group the Dutch national team was unequalled. The Poles took a poor, fourth place, due to poor results, including a draw 0-0 with Cyprus at their own stadium.

1992 Sweden

The championship of the Old Continent in 1992 kicked off surprisingly, and ended with a real sensation. The Yugoslav team, which stepped down due to UNO sanctions, was replaced in the last minute by the Danes. Seemingly unprepared, gathered here from leaves and drawn away from non-football activities (their coach Richard Møller Nielsen learned about the mission in the kitchen of his house, which he painted while slowly repairing the house) – improved from one match to another…

Winners of the group phase were the teams of Sweden and Denmark, which unexpectedly defeated France and Britain (for the second time in a row the British took the last place in the group, scoring only one goal) and Holland and Germany. The confrontation of these two powers showed the supremacy of the Orange team, which won 3-1. In the first semi-final the Germans eliminated the hosts of the tournament – Sweden. Despite a 2-1 lead of the Germans retained until the 88th minute, after the referee’s whistle sounded the last time the score was 3-2.

The Danish Sensation
The second match of ½ finale was a great surprise. The Danes, whose good form was taken by all with a pinch of salt, put a fierce resistance to the favoured Dutch. After the 120th minute of the match, the score was 2-2. The better scorers of penalty kicks were the Scandinavians. The final score 5-4 gave them an unexpected pass to the final game. In the final game, at the Göteborg stadium, the whole football Europe was shocked in the 18th minute when Germans were losing 0-1 to the brave Danes, and the great goalkeeper, Peter Schmeichel, was unbeatable. The sensation became a fact 12 minutes before the end of the match, when the second goal was scored for the Scandinavians by Kim Vilfort.

Changes On the Map of Europe
For the first time the national team of the united Germany played in this tournament. It was also a first event in which the team of the Community of Independent States, created after the collapse of the Soviet Union, with no flag or national anthem, gave their performance. Czechoslovakia played under a slightly changed name: Czecho Slovakia. This was the last performance of the joint Czech and Slovak team.

The Best Scorers Of the Tournament
Each of Henrik Larsson (Sweden), Karlheinz Riedle (Germany), Denis Bergkamp (Holland) and Thomas Brolin (Sweden) – scored 3 goals.

The Results
Champion of Europe 1992: Denmark
Vice-champion: Germany
IIIrd place: Holland/Sweden

The Poles, despite a good show given, failed to defeat the British and the Irish in the elimination rounds.

1996 Britain

The British Euro finals were the first tournament played by as many as 16 teams divided into 4 groups. This was a high level tournament, one of the best from both the perspective of sports, as well as financial earnings.

The great losers were the national teams of Italy and Holland. The first dropped out after the group qualifications phase, beaten 2-1 by the Czech. The Orange team was humiliated in the group match. They were smashed by Britain 1-4.

Nevertheless, they made their way to the quarter-final, where they, however, got a beating from the French and dropped out after the penalty kicks. Also the national teams of Czech, Britain and Germany got to the ½-final games.

The most attractive seemed to be the match of the two latter teams. After the prescribed time the score was 1-1 and a play-off was needed. The Germans surpassed the British in penalty kicks and got to the final game. In the other match the Czech, also after penalties, eliminated the Three-coloured team.

The First "Golden Goal"
A match between the Germans and the Czech came during the group phase of the Championships. At that time the Germans won 2-0. In the final game the Czech took the lead after a kick of Karel Poborsky. The score was equalled by the sub Olivier Bierhoff and a play-off was needed. This was the first tournament, on which the so called "Golden Goal" rule was enforced, claiming that the one who scores first in a play-off is the winner. In the fifth minute of the extended match time at the London Wembley stadium, Bierhoff once again forced Petr Kouba to capitulate, which let the Germans take the European Championship title for the third time.

The Best Scorer of the Tournament
Alan Shearer (Britain) with 5 goals.

The Results
The Champion of Europe 1996: Germany
The Vice-champion: Czech
IIIrd place: Britain / France

The Polish team failed once more. Our qualification group promoted the French and the Romanians to the final games.

2000 Belgium-Holland

The eleventh final games of the European Football Championships, also known as EURO 2000, took place on stadiums of Holland and Belgium. This was the first championship tournament organised by two countries jointly. And it was ideal from every viewpoint. Perfect organisation, marvellous stadiums filled with colourful spectators, and of course high quality football. 14 national teams played in the final games, selected after the qualifying rounds, together with Belgium and Holland as hosts.

The wish of God joined the Germans and the British in one group. This group was very strong, and included, beside these two, also the national teams of Portugal and Romania. The British had been unable to defeat the Germans since 1966. However, this time the goal of Alan Shearer let them feel the taste of a win over their immemorial rivals. This was the only victory of the Islanders in that tournament. Louis Figo led the marvellous Portuguese players to a 3-2 win over the British.

The same score was achieved by the Romanians playing the Kevin Keegan team, who scored a goal decisive for the promotion from a penalty kick in the 92nd minute. In the same time Portugal smashed the Germans 3-0 (a hat-trick of Sergio Conceicao). The favoured national teams of Britain and Germany (The Champion of Europe) failed to leave the group.

Also the Czech players who had won vice-championship of Europe 4 years ago, failed to conquer a promotion to the quarter-final games this time. The strongest teams of that group were those of France and Holland, and their confrontation was won 3-2 by the hosts. Another team promoted from the group was the tournament’s debutante - Turkey.

A highly dramatic and very exciting match was played by the national teams of Yugoslavia and Spain. In a match decisive for the first place in the group, the Yugoslavs led 3-2 by the 92nd minute. It is hard to believe, but they failed to retain this lead by the final whistle. The goals of Gaizki Mendieta in the 92nd and Alfonso Perez in the 95th minute gave 3 points to the Spanish. However, the luck deserted them in the next match.

¼ Finale
In the ¼ finale Mendieta and company faced a real chance to stop the Three-coloured on their way to the title of Champions of Europe. While losing 1-2, in the last minute of the match they worked out a penalty kick, but Raul missed the goal. The quarter-final meeting of the Dutch team with Yugoslavia ended with a score 6-1. Three goals were scored by Patrick Kluivert.

The Semi-finals
The Orange team aroused respect. However, in the semi-final match with the Germans they wasted as many as 5 penalty kicks – two in the prescribed time and three during the penalty kicks tournament. They lost 3-1.
The second match of the semi-finals between France and Portugal ended with a draw 1-1. A play-off was needed. When it approached an end, the referee dictated a controversial penalty kick for the Three-coloured after the Abel Xavier’s hand touched the ball. It came to elbow-jostling with the referees, and UEFA gave fines. Zidane used a penalty kick.

The French Team First in History
The final game Italy - France in Rotterdam was also dramatic. Italians were leading 1-0 following a goal by Marco Delvecchio. When the spectators celebrated a success, in the last seconds Wiltord won a play-off. The French did not waste the chance to deal a crushing blow on the shocked opponents. Their hangman was the scorer of the „golden goal” – David Trezeguet. France was the first team, which after winning the World Championship (1998 r.) also won the EURO.

The Best Scorers of the Tournament
Patrick Kluivert (Holland) and Savo Milosević (Yugoslavia) – each scored 5 goals.

The Results
The Champion of Europe 2000: France
The Vice-champion: Italy
IIIrd place: Portugal/Holland

Poland again failed to qualify to the final games of EURO, after losing the qualification matches with Britain and Sweden.

2004 Portugal

The Finals of European Football Championships 2004, called in short EURO 2004, were held in Portugal between 12th June and 4th July. Qualifications for the tournament lasted from September 2002 to November 2003. Fifty national teams were divided into ten groups. Each team played 2 matches with rivals in its group, one on its own stadium and one away. The best teams in each of the groups automatically entered the final games. Ten teams which took second places, must have played the play-off rounds to select five more teams. In this way, the final group of sixteen national teams, including Portugal, which hosted the championships, was formed.

There were surprises
After the matches of the group phase it turned out that the Spanish team – not for the first time – disappointed its fans by winning only once. Once the Champion of Europe (1964) the team packed with stars failed to leave the group. Its fate was shared by teams of Italy and Germany, also counted among favourites. The latter ones, with three titles fo Champions of Europe and the World, failed to win even once. English fans also suffered severe disappointment. Their team failed to cope in quarter finals with future finalists – the Portuguese team. The bitter taste of failure was also experienced by defenders of the champion title – the French. The three-coloured players unexpectedly proved to be weaker than the Greek team!

Hellas Ole !!!
Greeks, perfectly prepared for the tournament by German coach Otto Rehhagel, proved to be a real revelation at EURO 2004. Football played by Greek team had never been their strength. Footballers of this country played only once in World Championships and once in European Championships. Each time they rather served the role of "point donors" for other teams. It was different this time. "King Otto" succeeded in combining the chaotically playing individualities into a well concerted and effective team. They were promoted from the second place in the group, losing only against the hosts and eliminating Spaniards and Russians. In quarter finals they were a sensation by beating France 1-0. They were not stopped even by excellently paying Czechs, who lost in semi-finals 1-0. They reached the finals thanks to the so-called silver goal. Traianos Dellas scored the first and only such goal in EURO history.

Sensations continued
Greeks were not expected to stand much chance in the final confrontation against beautifully, spectacularly and technically  playing hosts, who beat Holland 2-1 in semi-finals. Portuguese players Luis Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo restored the art dribbling, by playing brilliantly and with rare ease, "like paying in the street" as described by Jurgen Klinsmann, a German football star. What is more they played on their own ground. But in the 57th minute of the match the Greek forward Angelos Charisteas astonished spectators at the Stadium of Light in Lisbon by defeating the host’s goalkeeper Ricardo. 15 thousand Greek spectators overwhelmed 50 thousand Portuguese ones.

By over half an hour Figo and company tried to strike a draw. To no avail. The greatest sensation since 1992, when Danes won the title, became a fact! Greece won the title of the Champion of Europe 2004!

Zago-who?
Such question was asked by some people before the championships. And in the end the captain of Greek team Theodoros Zagorakis was voted the best footballer of the tournament. "He was the captain from the beginning to the very end. He was a real chief and leader" – this is what Gerard Houllier, the French coach for many years, and the coach of Liverpool FC at the time, said about the 32-year old Greek.

Silver goal
Golden goal – scored in additional time, would finish the match immediately. At those championships a different rule was introduced – of the so-called silver goal. If a team scored more goals during the first part of additional time, it wins the match, and after the end of the first part the match is not continued.

Youth at the ball
Wayne Rooney of England was the youngest goal scorer at EURO for four days only. This is when a Swiss player Johan Vonlanthen scored  a goal by shooting at Barthez’ goalpost. He was 18 years and 141 days old.

A new ball from Vasco da Gama
Adidas prepared for those championships a new ball called "Roteiro". An absolute innovation was the fatc that the ball was not stitched but its individual elements were welded thermically. Due to this technology it is more durable, less prone to deformations and stands in perfect shape difficult weather conditions, e.g. it does not soak with water. The name "Roteiro" comes from the title of a book written by a famous, Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama. Its metallic-blue colour symbolises the sky and the sea.

Festive atmosphere
The championships in Portugal, both during the day and at night, were noisy, colourful and  swinging. Hot, Portuguese, southern climate and temperament spread to all guests. Swedes, Danes and the Dutch were leaders in preparation of national colours. The English brought with them unbelievable number of flags.

The best scorer of the tournament
Milan Baros (Czech Republic), scored 5 goals

Results
The Champion of Europe 2004: Greece
The Vice- Champion: Portugal
IIIrd place: Czech Republic and Holland