The Journey of the UEFA Euro – Big Evolution from 1960 to 2024

UEFA Euro 2024, which will be held in Germany, will be the seventeenth edition of the European championship. UEFA Euro is held every four years, and the first championship was held way back in 1960. Then the first UEFA Euro title was won by the Soviet Union. From then until today, football has changed significantly, and we bring you an overview of all European championships held so far.

UEFA Euro – The First Edition

The first UEFA Euro took place in 1960 when only four national teams participated in the final tournament. Host France, the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia participated in the first Euro. The Soviet Union convincingly defeated Czechoslovakia 3-0 in the first semi-final. In the second match, we saw a real spectacle as Yugoslavia beat France 5-4.

France led 4-2 until the 75th minute, and then Yugoslavia scored three goals in four minutes. The French were demoralized, and in the fight for third place, they lost 0-2 against Czechoslovakia. The Soviet Union won the first title of European champion with a 2-1 victory after extra time. This team was led by the legendary goalkeeper Lev Yashin. The competition was then called the UEFA Nations Cup, and the final was watched by around 18,000 fans.

UEFA Euro 1964-1972

Four years after the first UEFA Euro, the Soviet Union again found themselves in the final but failed to defend the title. The host of the tournament was Spain, which eventually won the title. In the semifinals, Spain defeated Hungary 2-1, while the Soviet Union convincingly defeated Denmark 3-0. Spain had been disqualified four years earlier for refusing to travel to Moscow and play against the Soviet Union. This time the teams crossed spears in front of General Francisco Franco, who permitted the Spaniards to play this match. Spain achieved a great victory in front of Franco and as many as 79,000 spectators at the Santiago Bernabeu, and again the result was 2-1.

UEFA Euro 1968 was held in Italy, and the host won the title again in a very interesting way. In the semi-finals, Italy played 0-0 with the Soviet Union, and then penalties were not taken after a draw. The winner was decided by a coin toss, and Italy was lucky. Yugoslavia defeated England 1-0 in the second semi-final. The final was as interesting as the semi-final played by Italy. Again it was tied 1-1, but this time a new game was played two days after the first final. Italy defeated Yugoslavia 2-0. After this title, Italy waited 53 years for a new title of European champion.

Four years later, the Soviet Union confirmed its status as one of the best national teams of that era. Again, this national team found itself in the final, which was held at the famous Heysel in Brussels, but suffered a second defeat. The Soviets defeated Hungary 1-0 in the semi-finals, and the host Belgium was defeated by West Germany 1-2. In the final, West Germany swept the Soviet Union 3-0, and Belgium won a consolation third place. This tournament was marked by the legendary Gerd Muller, who scored two goals in both games.

UEFA Euro 1976-1984

UEFA Euro 1976 was the last time only four teams participated. The host was Yugoslavia. This team failed to reach the finals as it was eliminated by West Germany 2-4 in the semi-finals. Gerd Muller excelled again. The second semi-final was also decided after extra time. Czechoslovakia defeated the Netherlands 3-1. Extra time was also played in the final, and after 120 minutes, it was 2-2, and the penalty shootout was started.

https://youtu.be/VxXWIZULgyw

The match is remembered for the last penalty shot by Antonin Panenka. This player took a chipped penalty that had not been seen before. After that, this method of taking penalties became popular and was named after this Czechoslovak player. He then brought the first and only European championship title for this country.

Four years later, the number of participants doubled. The host this time was Italy, which was defeated by Czechoslovakia in the fight for third place after 17 penalties. In the final, West Germany played again and managed to win the second title of European champion. The victory came at the end of the match with a goal by Hrubesch at the Olympic stadium in Rome in front of about 48,000 people.

France won its first European championship title at UEFA Euro 1984. France defeated Portugal 3-2 after extra time in the semi-finals. In the second semi-final, Spain defeated Denmark on penalties 5-4. The French defeated Spain 2-0 in the final at the Parc des Princes. This tournament was remembered for the dominance of the legendary Michel Platini. Platini scored as many as 9 goals and was the scorer in every game.

UEFA Euro 1988-1996

Germany hosted UEFA Euro 1988 for the first time, although it was still a divided country. West Germany failed to win a new title at home. It was defeated by the Netherlands in the semi-finals 1-2. The Soviet Union played the last EURO final that year, having first defeated Italy 2-0 in the semi-finals. The Netherlands won the title with a 2-0 victory, and the match was remembered for a great goal by Marco Van Basten, and that volley is one of the most beautiful goals in EURO history.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3af4QIh1oc&pp=ygUebWFyY28gdmFuIGJhc3RlbiBldXJvIDg4IGdvYWwg

In 1992, Denmark won the sensational title of European champion. This national team was not even supposed to play in the championship, but Yugoslavia was banned from participating, so Denmark traveled to Sweden instead. In the semi-finals, Denmark was better than the Netherlands after a better penalty shootout. In the second semi-final, Germany defeated Sweden 3-2. Denmark won its only title of European champion with a 2-0 victory over Germany.

England has never been the champion of Europe, and its fans hoped that this achievement could be achieved in 1996 on home ground. Sixteen national teams participated in this championship for the first time. The home team was defeated in the semi-finals by Germany on penalties. The only penalty was missed by the current coach of England, Gary Southgate. In the same way, the Czech Republic surprised the French but did not have the strength to win the title. Germany won the title with Oliver Bierhoff’s golden goal in the 95th minute at Wembley, and the final was watched by over 73,000 fans.

UEFA Euro 2000-2008

For the first time in history, two countries hosted UEFA Euro 2000. The Netherlands and Belgium jointly organized this tournament. France won a new title. First, they eliminated Portugal with Zidane’s golden goal from the penalty spot. Italy defeated the Netherlands in the second semi-final after a better penalty shootout. There were no goals, and then the Dutch were only accurate once from the penalty spot. France won the final in the same way as the semi-final, and this time the golden goal was scored by Trezeguet.

Portugal was the host in 2004, and it was the first major competition for Cristiano Ronaldo. At this championship, we saw the probable and biggest sensation in the history of the EURO. Greece won the title. The Greeks first defeated the Czechs in the semi-finals after extra time 1-0. The home team defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the second semi-final. In the final in Lisbon, Greece made a big surprise and shocked 60,000 Portuguese fans. The scorer of the historic goal was Angelos Charisteas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dR1DeR9cXP0&pp=ygUfcG9ydHVnYWwgZ3JlZWNlIGV1cm8gMjAwNCBmaW5hbA%3D%3D

UEFA Euro 2008 was again held by two countries. This time the hosts were Austria and Switzerland. Both teams finished the competition already in the group stage. The title was won by Spain after more than four decades. First, in the semifinals, they defeated Russia, which for the first time since independence, found itself in the finals of the competition. Spain achieved a convincing victory 3-0, and in the second semi-final, Germany defeated Turkey 3-2. In the final, the Red Fury won the title with a goal by Fernando Torres in front of more than 50,000 fans in Vienna.

UEFA Euro 2012-2020

Spain managed to defend their title at UEFA Euro 2012, which was held in Ukraine and Poland. Until then, it had never happened in history that a national team defended the title at the Euro. The Spaniards tied for the third title in major competitions after becoming world champions in 2010. In the semi-finals, Spain defeated Portugal after a penalty shoot-out, and their rivals in the final were Italy, which defeated Germany 2-1. There was no excitement in the final as Spain outclassed Italy 4-0 and thus made UEFA Euro history.

France tried to win the third European Championship title in 2016 at home but was stopped at the last step. For the first time, we had the opportunity to watch as many as 24 national teams at the tournament. In this tournament, Iceland played brilliantly and managed to eliminate England in the round of 16. He was eliminated by France in the quarter-finals.

In addition to Iceland, Wales also played great games and made it to the semi-finals. There he was defeated by Portugal 0-2. In the second semi-final, France defeated Germany 2-0. In the final, Portugal shocked the French in front of more than 75,000 fans in Saint-Denis. The decisive goal was scored by Eder in the 109th minute. The match is remembered for the tears of Cristiano Ronaldo, who left the game already in the first half after the injury he suffered. Until the end of the match, he was like an assistant coach to Fernando Santos and gave non-stop advice to his teammates.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLN9mEP_T5A&pp=ygUNcG9ydHVnYWwgZWRlcg%3D%3D

The last UEFA Euro was held in 2021 in as many as 11 countries. The tournament was postponed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The grand final was to be played at Wembley, and the English believed that it was time for football to finally return home. However, that did not happen even though England reached the final. First, in the semi-finals, they beat the excellent Denmark 2-1.

In the second semi-final, Italy eliminated Spain after penalties. In the final in front of more than 67,000 fans, England took the lead in the second minute but failed to keep the lead until the end. We didn’t see any goals in overtime, so the penalty shootout was started. Italy fared better, as the English missed as many as three penalties. After 53 years, Italy became the European champion again.