Every European Championship tournament from France 1960 onwards

France 1960

The first European Championship was held in France in 1960. Only four teams took part in the finals, which started directly with the semi-finals; every earlier stage formed part of the qualifying campaign. The four semi-finalists were Czechoslovakia, hosts France, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. The qualifying rules were also different. There was a preliminary round, in which Czechoslovakia beat the Republic of Ireland 4-2 on aggregate, followed by a stage called the "1^st round" and then the quarter-finals. The most curious story is the Soviet Union's qualification: they secured their place at Euro 1960 because Spain refused to travel to the Soviet Union. The Soviets went on to become the first European champions, beating Czechoslovakia 3-0 in the semi-finals and recording a 2-1 victory against Yugoslavia in the final after extra time. Viktor Ponedelnik scored the winner in the 113^th minute; his surname, fittingly or not, means "Monday". Czechoslovakia took third place.

1. Soviet Union
2. Yugoslavia
3. Czechoslovakia

Spain 1964

The format of Euro 1964 was the same as in 1960, so once again only four teams reached the finals. The biggest surprise of the qualifying campaign was Luxembourg, who reached the quarter-finals after a draw and a win against the Netherlands. The Red Lions then drew twice with Denmark and had to play a play-off, which they lost 1-0, sending Denmark into the semi-finals. The Soviet Union were among the best teams in the world at the time and reached the final for the second tournament in a row, but this time the hosts, Spain, won the final.

1. Spain
2. Soviet Union
3. Hungary

Italy 1968

This time the qualifying system changed, with eight groups whose winners went into the quarter-finals, and two new teams reached the finals. Euro 1968 was England's first European Championship. The Three Lions won qualifying Group 8 ahead of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, then beat Spain twice to reach the semi-finals. There England lost 1-0 to Yugoslavia, but they took third place by beating the Soviet Union, with Geoff Hurst and Bobby Charlton scoring in the third-place play-off. Even more remarkable was the path of Italy, the eventual champions. They came close to elimination in the quarter-finals after losing the first leg 3-2 to Bulgaria, but won the second leg 2-0 to reach the semi-finals. There Italy were lucky again: the match against the Soviet Union finished 0-0, and the winner was decided by the toss of a coin.

Italy captain Giacinto Facchetti later described the scene. He went down to the dressing rooms with the Soviet captain, accompanied by an official from each team. The referee pulled out an old coin, Facchetti called tails, and the call was right, so Italy were through to the final. He then raced back upstairs, where the stadium was still full and around 70,000 fans were waiting for the result, and his celebrations told them that Italy had won. In the final against Yugoslavia, Italy needed luck once more. They equalised for 1-1 in the 80^th minute and then won the replay 2-0.

1. Italy
2. Yugoslavia
3. England

Belgium 1972

This was the Soviet Union's fourth consecutive European Championship, but they could never repeat their success of 1960. Belgium and West Germany made their debuts at the finals in 1972, and the Germans were outstanding, winning their first European title with a 2-1 semi-final victory over hosts Belgium and an emphatic 3-0 win against the Soviet Union in the final. England came very close to qualifying but lost 3-1 on aggregate to the eventual champions, West Germany.

1. West Germany
2. Soviet Union
3. Belgium

Yugoslavia 1976

The first hat-trick in European Championship history was scored at Euro 1976. Dieter Müller of West Germany scored it in the semi-final win against Yugoslavia. West Germany then lost the final to Czechoslovakia on penalties after a 2-2 draw, one of the biggest surprises in the history of the tournament. Czechoslovakia's glorious victory was sealed when Panenka scored his cheeky chipped penalty to win the title. Euro 1976 was also the first European Championship for which the Soviet Union failed to qualify: they were beaten 4-2 on aggregate in the quarter-finals by Czechoslovakia, the eventual champions.

1. Czechoslovakia
2. West Germany
3. Holland

Italy 1980

Euro 1980 was the first expanded European Championship, with the number of finalists doubled to eight. It was also the first time the hosts qualified automatically without playing in the qualifiers. Alongside the hosts, the winners of the seven qualifying groups took their places at the tournament.

The format of the finals was again very different from modern regulations. There were two groups, and the group winners met in the final, while the runners-up played off for third place. The points system was also different, with two points for a win and one for a draw. England made their second appearance at a European Championship but could not reach the final. After a 1-1 draw with Belgium, they lost 1-0 to hosts Italy, and in their third game they beat Spain 2-1.

The final was a repeat of the Euro 1972 semi-final. West Germany beat Belgium 2-1, Hrubesch scoring a fine winner in the closing minutes. Notably, the 27 goals of the tournament were scored by 22 different players.

1. West Germany
2. Belgium
3. Czechoslovakia

France 1984

The rules changed again: the top two teams in each of the two groups went through to the semi-finals, and there was no third-place match.

This European Championship is remembered above all for the extraordinary performance of the former UEFA president – Michel Platini. The forward scored in every one of France's games at the tournament, including two hat-tricks, and finished as top scorer of Euro 1984 with nine goals. France were simply the best team at the tournament, playing attacking football throughout and beating Denmark (1-0), Belgium (5-0), Yugoslavia (3-2), Portugal (3-2) and Spain (2-0 in the final).

1. France
2. Spain

Losing semi-finalists: Denmark and Portugal

West Germany 1988

Euro 1988 brought the Netherlands their first and only European title, won at the Olympiastadion in Munich. Ruud Gullit and star forward Marco van Basten were outstanding, and Van Basten scored a classic volley in the final against the Soviet Union. The other Dutch hero was goalkeeper Hans van Breukelen, who saved Igor Belanov's penalty. Van Basten finished as the tournament's top scorer with five goals, three of them against England. The Three Lions finished bottom of their group without a point, a complete disappointment for the nation.

The Soviet Union, meanwhile, became the country with the most lost finals. After their success in 1960, they had now lost three finals.

1. Holland
2. Soviet Union

Losing semi-finalists: Italy and West Germany

Sweden 1992

UEFA Euro 1992 in Sweden produced one of the most surprising outcomes in football history. The story began when UEFA disqualified Yugoslavia because of the break-up of the country and the war. Denmark, runners-up in the qualifying group, took Yugoslavia's place. Nobody expected anything from the Danes, who had very little time to prepare. Head coach Richard Møller Nielsen had to call up players at short notice, some of whom were already on holiday, and he had faced heavy criticism before the tournament began.

Denmark opened with a 0-0 draw against England, and even then nobody imagined what the Danish players would go on to achieve. Hosts Sweden then won 1-0 against the Red Dynamite, and it looked as if Denmark would be heading home after their final group game against the favourites, France. Instead, Denmark won 2-1 against France and finished second in the group, as England lost 2-1 to Sweden.

The next heroic moment for Nielsen's players came in the semi-final against the defending champions, the Netherlands. The match ended 2-2, so it went to penalties. Surprisingly, Marco van Basten missed from the spot and sent Denmark into the final for the first and only time in their history.

The surprises kept coming. In the final, John Jensen, who scored fewer than 15 goals in his whole career, opened the scoring with a clinical finish from around 20 metres. Vilfort added Denmark's second against Germany 12 minutes from time. The real hero for the Red Dynamite, though, was the legendary goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, who made more than ten saves against Klinsmann and company.

1. Denmark
2. Germany

Losing semi-finalists: Sweden and Holland

England 1996

The first European Championship held in England, in 1996, was one of the most glorious for the Three Lions. A new rule added eight more teams to the finals, bringing the total to 16. England had a very strong team and the backing of home crowds, with Alan Shearer (top scorer with five goals), Paul Gascoigne, Paul Ince and Teddy Sheringham all in the squad.

England drew 1-1 with Switzerland on the opening day, but then played very well, beating Scotland and thrashing the Netherlands to reach the quarter-finals. The knockout stage was far from easy. England beat Spain on penalties after a 0-0 draw, but England's long history of misfortune against Germany continued, and the Germans beat the Three Lions on penalties to reach the final.

The other finalist, surprisingly, was the Czech Republic, although they had a very good team and their run to the final was no accident. Karel Poborský scored one of the most memorable goals of the tournament, a superb lob from around 20 metres in the 1-0 win against Portugal. Other key players in the Czech side included Pavel Nedvěd, Patrik Berger, Kadlec and many other quality footballers.

The Czech Republic looked set for another European surprise when Patrik Berger scored a penalty against Germany in the 59^th minute of the final. German coach Berti Vogts then brought on Oliver Bierhoff, who equalised just four minutes after coming off the bench and took the match into extra time. In the 95^th minute Bierhoff shot at Kouba's goal again, and the goalkeeper made a costly mistake that let the striker score once more. Under the golden goal rule, that goal in extra time won the final for Germany.

1. Germany
2. Czech Republic

Losing semi-finalists: England and France

Belgium & Holland 2000

UEFA Euro 2000 was the first European Championship held in two countries, with Belgium and the Netherlands qualifying automatically as co-hosts. England also reached the tournament, beating Scotland in the play-offs thanks to two goals from Paul Scholes.

England led Portugal 2-0 in their first group game but eventually lost 3-2. Alan Shearer then secured a 1-0 win against the defending champions, Germany, which meant the Three Lions needed just one point against the underdogs, Romania. But a needless foul in the box by Phil Neville proved decisive, and Romania won 3-2. It was another huge disappointment for England and their supporters, who had expected so much more from the team.

France became European champions for the second time, though they needed luck and two golden goals to do it, in the semi-final against Portugal and in the final against Italy. The French were on the verge of losing the final when, in the third minute of added time, Wiltord beat Toldo. David Trezeguet then scored a superb golden goal to secure France's second European title. Zinedine Zidane was named player of the tournament.

1. France
2. Italy

Losing semi-finalists: Holland and Portugal

Portugal 2004

Even more surprising than Euro 1992, UEFA Euro 2004 was full of unexpected results, and the complete outsiders Greece lifted the trophy at only their second European Championship, to everyone's astonishment. The Greeks began with a 2-1 win against hosts Portugal in the opening match. They then held Spain to a 1-1 draw, which proved enough to take them into the knockout stage despite a 2-1 defeat by Russia in their last group game. Charisteas scored the only goal of the quarter-final against France, and Otto Rehhagel's side knocked out the Czech Republic in the semi-finals with a goal from Traianos Dellas in extra time.

The final was a repeat of the opening match, Portugal against Greece. Nobody expected the Greeks to beat the Portuguese again, given a home side that included Luís Figo, Deco, Pauleta, Rui Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo. But Charisteas silenced the host nation with a goal in the 57^th minute.

1. Greece
2. Portugal

Losing semi-finalists: Czech Republic and Holland

Austria and Switzerland 2008

UEFA Euro 2008 marked the beginning of Spain's dominance at international level, as the Spaniards won their second major international tournament. La Furia Roja won all three group matches, against Russia, Sweden and Greece. They then beat Italy on penalties, Russia in the semi-finals and Germany 1-0 in the final to lift the most prestigious trophy in European international football.

The biggest surprises of the tournament were Russia and Turkey. The Russians beat Sweden and Greece in the group stage and then defeated the Netherlands 3-1, scoring twice in extra time, before losing to the eventual champions, Spain, in the semi-finals. Turkey came very close to reaching the final but lost their semi-final to Germany to a Lahm goal in the very last minute.

The Spaniards were simply better than every other team in the competition from the first match to the last. They scored 12 goals in six games, and David Villa finished as top scorer with four.

1. Spain
2. Germany

Losing semi-finalists: Russia and Turkey

Poland & Ukraine 2012

Euro 2012 brought Spain a second consecutive European title and their third overall. Their remarkable performances carried them unimpeded to the final match against Italy, which the Spaniards won 4-0.

The Netherlands were the big disappointment of the tournament, finishing bottom of their group after losing all three matches. Another big surprise was Italy reaching the final with a 2-1 win against the favourites, Germany. Balotelli scored twice before Özil converted a penalty in the last minute of the game.

Andrés Iniesta deservedly became the player of the tournament. The Barcelona playmaker was simply unstoppable, his confidence already boosted by winning the World Cup in 2010.

1. Spain
2. Italy

Losing semi-finalists: Portugal and Germany