Five memorable tournaments over the years.
France 1984
Final: France 2, Spain 0
Michel Platini was the star for the home nation, scoring nine goals in
five games to give France a first major title. He scored in the last
minute of extra time to win the semi-final against Portugal, then
netted the opener as France beat Spain 2-0 in the final.
West Germany 1988
Final: Holland 2, Soviet Union 0
A trio of AC Milan players led Holland to their only major title. Marco
van Basten, Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard combined under the coaching
of "Total Football" inventor Rinus Michels. Van Basten's amazing volley
from a cross by Arnold Muhren in the final remains the iconic image of
the tournament.
Sweden 1992,
Final: Denmark 2, Germany 0
Denmark failed to qualify for the 1992 tournament, but were allowed to
compete after Yugoslavia were kicked out because of UN sanctions. The
Danes had only two weeks to prepare, but, after getting past Holland in
a semi-final shoot-out, they surprised everybody by beating a unified
Germany in the final.
England 1996,
Final: Germany 2, Czech Republic 1
The tournament expanded from eight to 16 teams and it was the first
to be decided by a "Golden Goal". England were the favourites, but lost
on penalties to Germany in the semi-finals. In the final, Oliver
Bierhoff equalised in the 73rd minute against the Czechs and then
scored the "Golden Goal" in the 95th.
Belgium and Holland 2000,
Final: France 2, Italy 1
France left it late to beat Portugal 2-1 in extra time of their
semi-final with a 117th-minute "Golden Goal" penalty from Zinedine
Zidane. They repeated the trick as Sylvain Wiltord scored a 90th-minute
equaliser in the final against Italy before David Trezeguet then
knocked in the winning goal in the 103rd.
Five classic Euro championships
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