The History of the UEFA European Championships

The pan-European UEFA European Championship is one of soccer’s top championships. It features the best teams from around Europe who play for the Delauney trophy. The history of the UEFA European Championships can be traced back to the 1960s.

The First UEFA European Championship

Admittedly, there had been some discussion before this about the possibility of having a pan-European soccer championship. The relative success of the European Cup for club sides had demonstrated the potential of European soccer. In 1958, UEFA decided to stage a pan-European Championship for national teams. They would play for the Delauney trophy, named after the FIFA President Henri Delauney.

The first European Championship, originally called the European Nations Cup, was staged in 1960. That was only a small championship, as only four teams actually took part in the finals. These teams were France, the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia. The winners of this first championship were the Soviet Union, who beat Yugoslavia 2-1 in the final.

European Championship Expansion

Although further teams began to enter the qualification, the European Championship remained limited to only four teams in the 1970s. Penalty shoot-outs were introduced in 1976. Indeed, a penalty shoot-out would decide the final as Czechoslovakia beat West Germany on penalties.

In the 1980s, the European Championship expanded to include four extra teams. A total of eight teams played in it, with two groups of four teams. Then, the winners of these groups would play each other in the final. West Germany won the European Championship of 1980, with a 2-1 win against Belgium.

Further games were also included in the 1984 European Championship. Although the championship still included eight teams, a semi-final was introduced to add some knock-out stages to the tournament. Therefore, the top two teams progressed from the group stages. France dominated that championship, with the inspirational Platini captaining the French team that would lift the trophy.

The 1988 European Championship was most notable for the excellent Dutch team that would win the European title. This team included some fine players, although it was Van Basten who would win them the championship with a fantastic volley scored in the final.

In Euro 1996, the championship would further expand to include 16 teams. There were more groups and an extra quarter-final stage added. This was the first tournament that included Golden Goals in the European Championship, which FIFA later scrapped. Germany would win the championship for the first time as a united German team, after beating the Czech Republic in the final.