The History of Europe’s International Football Championship: Euro 2012
The history of the Euro has become a relevant topic with the start of Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine. The European Football Association (UEFA) held the first European Championship finals in France in 1960. Only four teams competed and the “final tournament” was effectively the semi-finals and final of the Knockout Cup.
Hosts France were the favourites, but despite taking a 4-2 lead in the semi-final against Yugoslavia with 15 minutes left, they lost 5-4. The final match was won by the Soviet Union, the star of which was goalkeeper Lev Yashin.
The 1964 tournament was held in Spain, which faltered from the 1960 event after their fascist dictator General Franco refused to allow the Soviet communists into his country for a qualifying quarter-final match. This time, with UEFA threatening to withdraw the tournament from the Spaniards, the defending champions were allowed in. Franco will be happy with the way things turned out, as Spain beat the Soviet Union in the final.
The host nation won the tournament for the second consecutive year in 1968, with Italy beating Yugoslavia, runner-up two times in three matches.
The famous West German team Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller and Gunther Netzer won the 1972 finals in Belgium, but were unable to retain their cup in Yugoslavia four years later. In the 1976 final, they lost to Czechoslovakia on penalties, and Antonin Panenka scored the decisive penalty with one of the best kicks of all time, a superb shot right in the middle of the road.
The euro is growing. . . and even bigger
The 1976 finals were very popular, so for Europe 80, UEFA allowed eight teams to compete in the finals. Two four-team mini tournaments competed, with the group winners facing each other in the final. West Germany regained the trophy they lost four years ago, beating Belgium in the final, but it was a bad tournament that did not last long in the memory.
The format was slightly modified for the 1984 edition in France, with the semi-finals after the opening group stage. If the 1980 tournament had been forgotten, this one might have been the greatest ever, with midfielder Michel Platini scoring nine goals in five matches as hosts France won their first title, stunningly beating Portugal 3-2 in a thrilling half, before… Spain defeats in the final.
Euro 88, held in West Germany, was another unforgettable classic. After losing two World Cup finals in the 1970s, the Netherlands finally clinched some titles, defeating the Soviet Union 2-0 in the final. The match, and the championship, will always be remembered because of Marco van Basten’s superb shot in the final, and a cross pass dangling from an almost impossible angle to the right of the Russian goal.
Euro 92 in Sweden was memorable, although the tournament provided perhaps the biggest fairy tale in European Championship history. Denmark failed to qualify, but implementation was delayed when Yugoslavia, which topped its qualifying group, plunged into civil war and was unable to compete. The Danes reached the final, beating defending champions Germany 2-0.
At the moment, the Euro is almost as popular as the World Cup, so the European Union has decreed that 16 teams will compete for Euro 96, which is held in England. And the host looked as good a bet as anyone, especially after Paul Gascoigne scored the top scorer in the 2-0 win over Scotland, and England beat the impressive Netherlands 4-1. But they met Germany in the semi-finals, and went out on penalties. Germany beat the Czech Republic in the final thanks to Oliver Bierhoff, who scored the first golden goal to win a major tournament.
The euro in the new millennium
Euro 2000, held jointly by Holland and Belgium, was a great success, with many exciting and dramatic matches recorded. The Netherlands were defeated in the semi-finals by Italy and lost two penalty kicks during regular time. The Italians came close to winning the title, leading France 1-0 in the final with seconds left, but Sylvain Wiltord netted a thrilling goal, before David Trezeguet netted a superb golden goal in extra time.
Euro 2004 was a quieter affair. The Greek team led by Otto Rehhagel was considered tough, and not because they cared: they won the tournament spectacularly against all odds, suffocating France, their long-dreamed Czech Republic, and hosts Portugal.
The 2008 European Championships was held in Austria and Switzerland, most notably Turkey’s efforts to keep pace with the achievement of its rival Greece four years ago. They reached the semi-finals, thanks to two impressive comebacks – a 3-2 win from two goals down over the Czech Republic, and a penalty shootout win over Croatia after plundering a 1-1 draw with the last kick of the match. Match – but was eventually knocked out by Germany.
However, the Germans had no answer for Spain, who were by far the best team in the tournament. They won the final thanks to the lone goal of Fernando Torres, adding a second European Championship to the tournament they won again in 1964.