Scotland and the Republic of Ireland

There was much discussion about an expansion of the tournament to 24 teams, started by Scotland and the Republic of Ireland, due to the increased number of football associations in Europe after the breakups of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, the USSR and the inclusion of many Asian based countries.

The new president of UEFA, Michel Platini, was reported to be in favour of expansion which proved an accurate assumption. Whilst on 17 April 2007, UEFA's Executive Committee formally decided against expansion in 2012, Platini indicated in June 2008 that UEFA will increase participation from 16 to 24 teams in future tournaments, starting from 2016. On 25 September, it was announced by Franz Beckenbauer that an agreement had been reached, and the expansion to 24 teams would be officially announced the next day.

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Marco van Basten

Marcel "Marco" van Basten (31 October 1964) is a Dutch football manager and former head coach of Eredivisie side AFC Ajax and the Dutch national team. Previously, he was a football player who played for Ajax and A.C. Milan in the 1980s and early 1990s. He is regarded as one of the greatest forwards of all time and scored 277 goals in a career cut short by injury. Known for his strength on the ball, his tactical awareness and spectacular strikes and volleys, van Basten was named European Footballer of the Year three times (1988, '89 and '92) and FIFA World Player of the Year in 1992. Van Basten was voted eighth in a poll organised by the French weekly magazine France Football consulting their former Ballon d'Or winners to elect the Football Player of the Century.

In 1987, Silvio Berlusconi signed van Basten for A.C. Milan, with fellow countrymen Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard joining in 1988. In his first season, Milan won their first Scudetto in eight years, but van Basten played only 11 games and was constantly troubled by an ankle injury.

In 1988–89, van Basten won the Ballon d'Or as Europe's top footballer. He scored 19 goals in Serie A and scored two goals in the final of European Cup as Milan triumphed against Steaua Bucureşti.

In 1989–90, he became Capocannoniere, Serie A's leading goal scorer, and Milan successfully defended the European Cup after beating S.L. Benfica in the final match.

Milan struggled in the 1990–91 season, as Sampdoria won the Scudetto. After van Basten fell out with Arrigo Sacchi, Berlusconi sacked the manager. Fabio Capello took over the following season, and Milan went undefeated in the league to win another Scudetto. Van Basten scored 25 league goals, and became Capocannoniere again.

In November 1992, he became the first player to score four goals in a Champions League match. The goals came against the Swedish team IFK Göteborg.

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Overall top goalscorer in finals 9

Michel François Platini (born 21 June 1955) is a French former football player, manager and current president of UEFA. Platini was a member of the French national team that won the 1984 European Championship, a tournament in which he was voted the best player and top goalscorer. He participated in the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups, reaching the semi-finals in the latter two. Platini, Alain Giresse, Luis Fernández and Jean Tigana together made up the "carré magique" (French for "magic square"), the group of midfield players that formed the heart of the French national team throughout the 1980s. He is also widely regarded as one of the best passers in football history as well as one of history's greatest free kick specialists and finishers. He holds the record for most goals (9) scored in European Championship final tournaments despite only appearing in one such tournament (1984). Despite being a midfielder, he held the national team top scorer record until striker Thierry Henry surpassed the 41 goals mark in 2007.

Platini was named Chevalier of the Legion of Honour on 29 April 1985 and became Officier in 1988. He was the French national team coach for four years, and was the co-organizer of the 1998 World Cup in France. He has also been the chairman of the FIFA Technical and Development Committee, and vice-president of the French Football Federation.

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Winners and finalists

In all, 27 nations have appeared at least once in the final tournament. Of these, only twelve have made it to the final match, and nine of them have won it at least once. With three titles, Germany is the most successful European Championship team. No team has ever won consecutive titles.

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Methods for Qualifications

The qualifying phase is done in groups. Each group is played in a league format with teams playing each other home and away. Teams then either qualify for the final tournament or to further playoffs depending on their position in the group. As with most leagues, the points are awarded as three for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. In the eventuality of one or more teams having equal points after all matches have been played, the following criteria are used to distinguish the sides:

1. Higher number of points obtained in the group matches played among the teams in question.
2. Superior goal difference from the group matches played among the teams in question.
3. Higher number of goals scored in the group matches played among the teams in question.
4. Higher number of goals scored away from home in the group matches played among the teams in question.
5. Results of all group matches:
1. Superior goal difference
2. Higher number of goals scored
3. Higher number of goals scored away from home
4. Fair play conduct.


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2004 UEFA European Football Championship

The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship was the twelfth tournament of the UEFA European Football Championship, a quadrennial football tournament for European nations, and was held in Portugal, for the first time, between 12 June and 4 July 2004. Spain and Austria-Hungary were the other bidding nations for the hosting of this event. As in the previous two tournaments, in England and Netherlands/Belgium, sixteen teams contested the final tournament after going through a qualification round which began in 2002. The tournament took place in ten venues located in eight cities Aveiro, Braga, Coimbra, Guimarães, Faro/Loulé, Leiria, Porto and Lisbon.

During the opening ceremony, the Portuguese portrayed a ship, symbolizing the voyages of the Portuguese explorers, sailing through a sea which gave place to the flags of all competing countries. Such was the enthusiasm that overtook the Greek fans that the ship became the symbol of the Greek victory, as Greeks chanted for the "Pirate Ship" (πειρατικό), as the Greek National Team was instantly named. Also, Portuguese-Canadian pop singer Nelly Furtado performed her single Força, which represents Portuguese culture.

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UEFA Euro 2000

UEFA Euro 2000 was the first tournament to be held by two countries, the Netherlands and Belgium. France, the reigning world champion, was favored to win, and they lived up to expectations when they beat Italy 2–1 after extra time, having come from being 1–0 down: Sylvain Wiltord equalized in the very last minute of the game and David Trezeguet scored the winner in extra time.

UEFA Euro 2004, like 1992, produced an upset: Greece, who had only qualified for one World Cup (1994) and one European Championship (1980) before, beat host Portugal 1–0 in the final (after having also beaten them in the opening game) to win a tournament that they had been given odds of 150–1 to win before it began. On their way to the final they also beat holders France as well as the Czech Republic with a silver goal, a rule which replaced the previous golden goal in 2003, before being abolished itself shortly after this tournament.

The 2008 tournament, hosted by Austria and Switzerland marked the second time that two nations co-hosted. It commenced on 7 June and finished on 29 June. The final between Germany and Spain was held at the Ernst Happel Stadion in Vienna. Spain defeated Germany 1–0, sparking much celebration across the country. This is their first title since the 1964 tournament.

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