The European Football Championship, informally known as the “European Championship”, is UEFA’s most important competition for its member states.

The event has a rich history and has been a global sporting attraction for decades.

Although the tournament was first held in 1960, the idea behind it originated years earlier.

UEFA’s first General Secretary, Henri Delaunay, proposed the idea of ​​a European national team competition in the 1920s.

Delauney's dream became reality when the first European Championship was held in France in 1960. However, the Frenchman did not live to see this success, as he died in 1955.

In recognition of Delaunay's role in the creation of the new competition, the trophy – donated by the French Football Federation – was named after him.

The first European Championship, a four-team competition, ended with the Soviet Union emerging victorious, beating Yugoslavia 2-1 in extra time in the final in Paris.

The next edition took place in 1964 in Spain, which won the title with a 2-1 victory against defending champions the Soviet Union in Madrid.

The 1968 tournament was won by hosts Italy, but the road to the final was full of drama.

The Italians reached the final of the 1968 European Championship after defeating the Soviet Union in the semi-finals by a coin toss – the only European international match to be decided in this way. The coin toss took place after the teams had played out a goalless draw in the semi-finals.

In the title fight, Italy and Yugoslavia drew 1-1 and had to force a replay two days later, which the Italians won 2-0 and lifted the trophy on home soil.

The legendary “Panenka” moment

In 1972 and 1976, the European Championship was still a four-team tournament, with West Germany and Czechoslovakia emerging as winners in each case, before the number of participants was expanded to eight teams in 1980.

Czechoslovakia's 1976 title win over West Germany was made famous by Antonin Panenka's penalty-kicking escapades – the attacking midfielder gently lobbed the ball into the middle of the goal to secure a 5-3 victory in the penalty shootout after the score had been 2-2 at the end of extra time.

His daring penalty kick was the first of its kind in international football and was later imitated many times by others until his style became known as the “Panenka”, named after the Czech.

In 1980, eight teams took part. The tournament consisted of a group stage, a third-place match and the final. West Germany won their second European title by beating Belgium 2-1. The victory was secured by a brace from Horst Hrubesch, including a header in the closing stages that sealed the win.

Four years later, France won its first major title on home soil, beating Spain 2-0 in the final, with captain Michel Platini scoring nine goals in five games.

The Netherlands won the 1988 edition in West Germany, beating the Soviet Union 2-0 in the final. The final was made famous by Marco van Basten's volley from the right wing over the goalkeeper.

The winner of the 1992 European Championship in Sweden was Denmark, which achieved a remarkable 2-0 victory in the final over the then world champions Germany.

Greece's fairytale victory and Spain's second consecutive European Championship dominance

The next five editions saw further expansion, with 16 teams participating in the finals.

Germany won its first title as a united nation at the 1996 European Championships in England, beating the Czech Republic 2-1 in the final. The first golden goal at a major tournament was scored by Oliver Bierhoff in the fifth minute of extra time.

The 2000 European Championship was the first tournament to be hosted by two countries, the Netherlands and Belgium. It was won by France, the reigning world champions at the time. The French came from behind to beat Italy 2-1 in extra time, thanks to David Trezeguet's winning golden goal.

Greece pulled off a major surprise at Euro 2004, beating hosts Portugal 1-0 in the final. At the start of the tournament, bookmakers were offering odds of 150:1 against Greece winning the tournament.

At Euro 2008, Spain dominated the tournament with their goal-scoring ability. David Villa was the top scorer with four goals. This year they won the title after a 44-year wait. In the final in Vienna, Austria, Fernando Torres sealed the 1-0 victory over Germany with a goal.

Spain became the first country to defend its European title in 2012, winning the tournament by beating Italy 4-0 in the final in Kyiv, Ukraine. The European title followed success at the 2010 World Cup, when La Roja became the first European team to win three major tournaments in a row.

The 2012 tournament was special for Torres: he became the first player to score in two European Championship finals and finished the season as one of the top scorers with three goals, despite only appearing as a substitute throughout the season.

Portugal's unlikely victory and despair for England

Starting with the 2016 edition, the tournament pool was expanded to 24 participants.

At the 2016 European Championships, Portugal finished third in their group but still made it to the final, where they beat hosts and favourites France 1-0 to win their first major trophy. Portugal's star player Cristiano Ronaldo was injured in the first half, but Eder scored in extra time to seal the team's fate.

Due to the delay caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 edition was held in 2021.

In a unique event format, the matches were played in 13 different European countries. The final took place at London's Wembley Stadium, where England lost 3-2 to Italy on penalties after a 1-1 final score.

England had hoped to end their 55-year wait for a major football trophy, but they suffered the crushing agony of defeat at the end of the night as three of their young players – Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho – failed to convert their penalties. For Italy, it was their second European title after their 1968 triumph.

The 2024 European Championship will take place in Germany from 14 June.

You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s own Tournament page for the European Championship 2024 with all match preparations and live text commentary and stay up to date with Group ranking and in real time Match results and schedules.