Held on a quadrennial basis, the UEFA European Championship is an association football tournament involving the top football nations in Europe. A total of 24 teams can advance to the event through qualification. The Soviet Union defeated Yugoslavia in the final of the inaugural Euros in 1960, while Spain and Italy are the most accomplished nations with three titles each.
Germany is hosting the Euro 2024, which begins in June and features six groups of four nations. Twenty-one of the 24 participating teams have already qualified for Euro 2024. A dozen other countries, including Greece, Ukraine, and Finland will set have a chance to qualify via the Euro 2024 playoffs in March.
There have been 10 winners of the 16 UEFA European Championships that have been held since the event’s inception in 1960. Here’s a look at the five most recent winners.
1. Italy (2020)
In 2020, Italy won their second European Championship—and their first since 1968—beating England 3-2 in penalties following a 1-1 draw in full time in front of more than 67,000 fans at Wembley Stadium. It was England’s first time in the final and Italy’s fourth; they were runners-up in 2012 and 2000.
The Euro 2020 was unique in many ways. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was delayed a year and held from June 11 to July 11, 2021. Rather than a single host nation, matches were played in 11 host cities throughout Europe, and video assistant referee technology was used for the first time. It was also the highest-scoring tournament since 1980, when UEFA first implemented the group stage format.
Italy finished first in Group A with a perfect 3-0 record, outscoring their opponents 7-0. They defeated Austria 2-1 in the Round of 16 and reached the final following wins over Belgium and Spain. Leonardo Bonucci scored the lone goal in the final against England and was one of three Italian players to score in penalty kicks. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma stopped each of England’s last three penalty attempts to secure the title for Italy.
2. Portugal (2016)
Portugal, which was runner-up when they hosted the Euro 2004, won their first title in 2016 following a memorable match against France in the final. France, the host nation, was seeking a third European Championship on home soil and finished first place in Group A, advancing to the Round of 16. They then beat the Republic of Ireland, Iceland, and Germany by a combined score of 9-3 in the knockout stage. Portugal, meanwhile, finished third in Group F, drawing in each of their first three games, and narrowly advanced to the knockout stage, beating out Turkey and Albania based on goal differential.
Portugal also had a tougher time in the knockout stage, first beating Croatia 1-0 in extra time and then beating Poland in penalties after a 1-1 draw. They beat Wales 2-0 in the semi-finals. In the final, played in front of more than 75,000 fans at the Stade de France, Portugal was without star player Cristiano Ronaldo for much of the game as he left due to injury. Ederzito António Macedo Lopes, also known as Eder, scored the game-winning goal in the 109th minute.
3. Spain (2012)
Spain won their third European Championship and second in a row in 2012 in dominant fashion. They beat rival Italy 4-0 in the final at the Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex in Kyiv, Ukraine. Spain is the only country to successfully defend the European Championship. The team finished first in Group C with seven points, outscoring their opponents 6-1, and beat France 2-0 in the quarterfinals and Portugal 4-2 in penalties after a full-time draw.
David Silva, Jordi Alba, Fernando Torres, and Juan Mata scored for Spain in the final victory over Italy. Torres finished tied for the tournament lead with three goals, while 10 Spanish players, including goalkeeper Iker Casillas and defenders Gerard Piqué and Sergio Ramos, were named to the UEFA Team of the Tournament.
4. Spain (2008)
Spain won in 2008 with a commanding performance that included a perfect 3-0 record in the group stage. Spain beat Russia, Sweden, and Greece by a combined score of 8-3 to finish first in Group D. They won their quarter-final and semi-final matches against Portugal and Russia. They beat Germany 1-0 in the final with Torres scoring the game-winning goal in the 33rd minute. David Villa led all players in the tournament with four goals.
5. Greece (2004)
Greece was a surprise winner in the Euro 2004. The country had never won an international trophy nor reached a European Championship final, and they had only qualified for the tournament once in their prior 10 attempts.
They narrowly advanced to the knockout stage, tying for second in Group A with Spain, but moved on because they scored more goals. Greece beat France and Czech Republic 1-0 in the quarterfinals and semifinals before upsetting Portugal, in front of more than 62,000 fans at Estádio da Luz in Lisbon. Angelos Charisteas scored the lone goal in the 57th minute.