Five takeaways from the opening matches of Euro 2024

With Portugal securing three points via a stoppage-time winner to beat Czechia, 2-1, on Tuesday, all 24 teams in the Euro 2024 tournament have played one game. 

Here are five quick takeaways from the first 12 matches:

The favorites all won

In a tournament known for producing shocking winners, most notably Denmark in 1992 and Greece in 2004, the first games played out as expected, with the five clear betting favorites — England, France, Germany, Portugal and Spain — all prevailing and taking three points from their opening match.

Only one VAR controversy

Video Assisted Referee (VAR), a topic so controversial in European football that one English Premier League team, Wolverhampton Wanderers, attempted to have it removed from the game entirely this offseason, came off primarily unscathed during the opening games. 

There have been seven VAR interventions, four goals disallowed, two goals awarded after initially being ruled out and one penalty given. The only controversial decision came from a late Belgium equalizer getting called back for a handball during the buildup to the goal. 

Plenty of goals

The first 11 matches all saw first-half goals, with only Portugal-Czechia going into halftime scoreless. There were 34 goals scored in the first 12 matches, an average of 2.83 goals per game, just slightly above the record for most goals per game set at Euro 2020 (played in 2021 due to COVID-19) of 2.78 and well above the historical group stage average of 2.38 goals per game.

Kylian Mbappe is out

Star forward Kylian Mbappe will miss Les Bleus' Friday tilt against the Netherlands after breaking his nose in the 85th minute of France's opening match 1-0 win against Austria.