The English, French, German, Italian and Spanish
leagues are considered the 5 major leagues in Europe.
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Major Leagues in Europe - European Championships, Champions
League, UEFA Europa League.
UEFA:
The home of football in Europe.
These football leagues have the highest viewers and are the biggest
spenders when it comes to securing the services of some of the world's best footballers
and managers.
Follow these leagues and others as the teams battle to be the best in
Europe.
Held once every four years, the European Championships are almost
as important as the World Cup; to the Europeans.
 France 1960:
(Winner USSR)
Brainchild of Henri Delaunay, secretary of the French Football Federation, France hosted
the first ever European Nations' Cup Finals; where USSR beat Yugoslavia 2:1aet in Paris.
 Spain 1964:
(Winner Spain)
USSR again made the final but this time they were beaten by Spain, in Madrid.
 Italy 1968:
(Winner Italy)
The knockout stage was replaced by a series of qualifying groups. World Cup Winners,
England, were beaten by Yugoslavia (in the Florence semi-final) who were in turn beaten by
the hosts, in Rome (after a replay).
 Belgium 1972:
(Winner West Germany)
The 1972 European Championships tournament was all about Gerd Müller, Franz Beckenbauer
and Gunther Netzer as West Germany beat England at Wembley, in the quarter-finals; the
hosts Belgium, in the semi-finals; and USSR in the final.
 Yugoslavia
1976: (Winner Czechoslovakia)
Czechoslovakia beat USSR in the quarter-finals (4:2 agg), Holland in the Zagreb semi-final
(3:1) and holders West Germany (on penalties) in the Belgrade final.
Italy 1980:
(Winner West Germany)
In 1980, the European Championship Finals tournament increased from four to eight teams;
with Italy qualifying as hosts. The teams were divided into two groups of four; with the
group winners, Belgium and West Germany, meeting in Rome for the final. Hrubesch scored
both goals in Germany's 2:1 victory.
France 1984:
(Winner France)
Group winners and runners-up now progressed to the semi-final. Home advantage, along with
Michel Platini's goals from midfield, saw France crowned champions of Europe; after
beating Portugal in the semi-final (3:2aet) and Spain in the final (2:0).
 Germany 1988:
(Winner Holland)
Holland finished runners-up to USSR in Group 2 but beat the Soviets in the Munich final
(2:0); after coming back from a goal down, against Germany, to beat the hosts (2:1) in the
Hamburg semi-final.
 Sweden 1992:
(Winner Denmark)
Denmark qualified for the finals through the back-door, as runners-up to Yugoslavia; who
had United Nations sanctions imposed on them. Denmark then finished runners-up to Sweden
in Group 1 (ahead of England and France) then went on to beat Holland on penalties in the
semi-final and Germany in the final (2:0).
 England 1996:
(Winner West Germany)
Thirty years after their World Cup win on home soil, England thought they had a real
chance to win the European crown. The tournament had grown to 16 teams in four groups of
four, with a quarter-final stage after the group phase.
England topped Group A, ahead of Holland, Scotland and Switzerland);
beat Spain on penalties and then went out to West Germany in the semi-final (on
penalties). Germany then beat Czech Republic (2:1) in the final at Wembley; with Oliver
Bierhoff scoring the 95th minute Golden Goal.
 Belgium-Holland
2000: (Winner France)
The tournament was co-hosted for the first time, by Belgium and Holland, but not one of
the hosts made it to the final; Belgium didn't get out of their group and Holland lost to
Italy in the Amsterdam semi-final (on penalties).
World Champions France also won the European title; with a 2:1 win over
Italy, in Rotterdam. Substitute David Trezeguet scored the Golden Goal, after Sylvain
Wiltord (also a substitute) equalised in the 90th minute; to take France into extra-time.
 Portugal 2004:
(Winner Greece)
Greece surprised everybody in Portugal by beating the hosts (1:0) in the Lisbon final; a
feat they'd already achieved in the Group Stage, with a 2:1 win in Porto.
  Austria-Switzerland 2008:
(Winner Spain)
Spain were the best team throughout a very attacking tournament, with David Villa ending
up as the top scorer; even though he was injured for the final against Germany.
  Poland-Ukraine 2012:
(Winner Spain)
Spain were once again in a class of their own, beating Italy (4:0) in
the 2012 Kiev final.
France
2016: (Winner Portugal)
The tournament expands from 16 to 24 teams.
Euro 2020 - Around Europe
Marketed as a 'EURO for
Europe', the Euro 2020 finals (eventually
played in 2021, due to the Covid pandemic)
were staged in eleven cities around Europe.
Three Group Games & One Round of 16 Game
 Amsterdam,
Netherlands.
 Bucharest,
Romania.
 Budapest,
Hungary.
 Copenhagen,
Denmark.
 Glasgow,
Scotland.
Seville,
Spain.
Three Group Games & One Quarter-Final
 Baku,
Azerbaijan.
 Munich,
Germany.
 Rome,
Italy.
 Saint
Petersburg, Russia.
London 2020
Hosts for the Euro 2020 final and semi-finals.
 London,
England.
Italy beat hosts England on penalties.
Euro 2024
The Euro 2024
competition was the third time that European
Championship matches were played on German
territory and the second time in reunified
Germany.
Spain won the European Championship for a
record fourth time.
UEFA Champions League
Organised by UEFA, the group stage of the Champions League is the
money-spinner that all premier clubs in the European leagues aspire to.
Nowadays, some teams don't even need to be a champion to qualify but
they'll need to finish near the top of their domestic league to enter the qualifying
rounds.
Clubs like Sturm Graz (Austria) and FC Basle (Switzerland) might never
dream of winning the trophy, or even make the final, but six games in the group stage can
make a big difference to their profit and loss account at the end of the season.
UEFA Champions League 2025
The UEFA Champions League 2025 will feature a new
format, which will be the first season under this new structure. In the
league phase, each team will play eight games against different
opponents, and all 36 teams will be ranked in a joint group.
The final match of the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League
will be held on May 31st, 2025, at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.
The 1999 Final between Real Mallorca and Lazio, at Villa Park, was the
last UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup Final to be staged.
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Cup replaced the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in the 1971/72
season.
In 2009-2010, the competition became known as the UEFA Europa League.
UEFA Europa League 2025
The UEFA Europa League 2025 will be played under a new format, which
replaces the 32-team group stage with a 36-team league phase.
The final match of the 2024/25 UEFA Europa League will be played on May
21, 2025, at San Mams Stadium in Bilbao, Spain.
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