Five memorable moments from football's European Championships

Germany is currently hosting the 2024 edition of the men's European Championships in football, which run from 14 June to 14 July.

Known as Euro 2024, the event sees 24 of the best national teams in Europe come together to contest the prestigious title.

The Euros have a long and storied history, and here we take a look back on some of the most memorable moments in the history of the competition.

From the birth of the panenka penalty to the golden goal rule, and even one from this year’s tournament, here are five standout moments the Euros have been home to…

• UEFA Euro 2024 full schedule: All results, scores and standings - complete list

Bierhoff scores a dramatic first golden goal (Euro 1996)

“Next goal wins it!”

It is a phrase known to those who have played football at any level. Whether on the training pitch or a kick around with friends, it is a common way to settle a game.

It is also a method that the European Championships adopted in one edition. Known commonly as the 'Golden Goal' it meant that knockout matches which finished level would be won by the team to score first in extra time.

The first time we saw this happened at the Euros came in 1996 when Czechia and Germany contested the final at Wembley.

The game ended 1-1 after the normal 90 minutes, so an extra 30 minutes would await both sides to try and find a winner. The Germans needed just five, with Oliver Bierhoff scoring his second of the game to clinch the title for his nation by way of the golden goal rule.

It was the first goal of this nature to be scored in a major international tournament, and in the final no less.

The rule was eventually amended to becoming a silver goal rule (where the teams would play for an extra 15 minutes regardless of whether a goal was scored), before beinscrapped following Euro 2004, with tournaments reverting to 30 minutes of extra time, followed by a penalty shootout if needed.

Greece, against all odds (Euro 2004)

There are few better footballing triumphs than Greece’s 2004 heroics. Many have come close in the Euros, but no nation has yet been able to achieve what they did 20 years ago.

Drawn into Group A with Portugal, Spain, and Russia, Greece were unfancied heading into the tournament, and many felt they would fail to make it into the knockout stages. But they sent a message with a curtain-raising victory over hosts Portugal, winning 2-1. Their surprises kept coming, holding heavyweight Spain to a 1-1 draw.

A loss to Russia in the final group game almost threatened to derail their magical run, leaving them level on points with the Spanish. But their superior goal difference saw them edge into second place and advance into the knockouts. With that came the toppling of another football juggernaut, sending France packing with a 1-0 victory in the quarter-finals.

The Greeks met Czech Republic in the final four, with yet another 1-0 win keeping their dream live, this time by way of the silver goal rule – whereby the team who scores in the first 15 minutes of extra time wins it – something that would eventually be scrapped following the conclusion of the ‘04 tournament.

Greece then faced Portugal in the final – a full circle moment, having opened their account against the hosts three weeks prior. Such was the story of their campaign, a sole goal would once more prove decisive and that came just before the hour mark when Angelos Charisteas scored the winner.

Birth of the Panenka (Euro 1976)

Did you know that the Panenka penalty was born in the European Championships?

It is a move that can only be described as poetry in motion… if you get it right, that is. There are few better sites from the spot than sending the keeper the wrong way and dinking it down the middle. From Lionel Messi to Andrea Pirlo, some of the greatest ever players have mastered the art of it over the years.

But it was Antonin Panenka who was the first to do so, in the final of the Euros. A true high-stakes moment, the deciding penalty against West Germany. It is audacious, perhaps even outrageous, but Antonin scores it and Czechoslovakia became European Champions.

"I got the idea and then I started slowly to test it and apply it in practice,” Antonin said.

“In the end, I chose the penalty in the final because I realised that it was the easiest and simplest way of scoring a goal. It's a simple recipe."

The Panenka Penalty. It's simple.

Iceland captures hearts (Euro 2016)

Regardless of the sport, everyone loves an underdog story. In 2016, it was Iceland who seemingly assumed that role at the Euros, not only for their performances on the pitch but also their fan turnout every game. The Viking Thunder Clap in particular took Europe by storm, becoming a tournament staple.

And the Icelandic players responded with their displays. Despite winning just one of their group games, a 2-1 victory over Austria, two draws against Hungary and eventual champions Portugal were enough to see them through to the knockout stages.

Then came the test of England, who went into the game as heavyweight favourites. When they scored in the opening four minutes, it seemingly justified why. But then came the Iceland equaliser just two minutes later, followed by the winner 12 minutes after that.

Iceland would go on to lose to finalists France in the quarter-finals, but knocking out the Three Lions remains one of the tournament’s biggest-ever upsets.

Eriksen’s remarkable return (Euro 2024)

The final moment in our list comes from the ongoing Euro 2024 tournament, courtesy of Denmark and Christian Eriksen. The Danes have had their fair share of notable moments over the years, including their ‘92 triumph when they stormed to victory having not initially qualified.

But three years ago, at the delayed Euro 2020 tournament, the football world came to a standstill as Eriksen collapsed during a game against Finland. It was later revealed that he had suffered a cardiac arrest and, for a few minutes his heart had stopped.

Eriksen would go on to make a comeback to football against all odds, playing for Brentford before a move to Manchester United. He also returned to the Danish national team and has been a mainstay for his homeland since.

On Sunday 16 June, exactly 1,100 days after his life-threatening collapse, the 32-year-old lined up alongside his teammates as they faced Slovenia in their Euro 2024 curtain raiser. 17 minutes in, Eriksen scored the goal to put his side ahead in one of the most remarkable scenes in football. It just had to be him.

They would go on to draw the game 1-1, but all the talk was about Denmark’s formidable no.10, in a return for the ages.