Group E stalemate makes Euro history

The stunning outcome could be largely attributed to powerhouse Belgium's shocking loss to Slovakia in the opening fixture after VAR interference denied them two goals. Following that upset, Belgium bounced back with a 2-0 win over Romania, who defeated Ukraine in their opening fixture. Ukraine, meanwhile, got their points back with a 2-1 victory against Slovakia on Friday. 

Now, the stage is set for the final matchday on Wednesday when Slovakia faces Romania and Belgium squares off with Ukraine. The deadlock is more prominent since the teams are separated by just three goals, meaning there's a chance three of them qualify for the knockout stages by avoiding losses (the top two teams in each group advance, along with the four best third-place finishers).

If both matches were to finish in draws, the goal difference in the group matches would separate the stalemate. In such a scenario, Romania and Belgium would qualify, while third-placed Slovakia would have to wait for other final group standings to play out. Ukraine would be eliminated in this scenario. 

All the pressure is clearly on Domenico Tedesco's Belgium squad, which entered Euro 2024 as an overwhelming favorite to dominate its group and make a deep run in the event. Group E was widely hailed as the easiest group with two countries (Slovakia and Romania) ranked outside FIFA's top 40 men's rankings and another (Ukraine) that only recently cracked the top 25. 

The last time such a stalemate occurred at a major tournament? The 1994 World Cup when Mexico, Republic of Ireland, Italy and Norway all finished the group stage with four points apiece. Incidentally, those countries were also in Group E and three of them advanced to the Round of 16.