Publication date: 12 Aug 2022

About the UEFA European Championship

The UEFA European Championship (UEFA Euro) is the main competition for national men’s football teams, run by UEFA.  The competition has taken place every four years since 1960, in between World Cups.

The history of the European Women’s Football Championship began in 1984.

Since 1968, the tournament has been officially recognized and renamed UEFA European Championship instead of the European Nations Cup.

UEFA Euro 2024

The 2024 UEFA European Football Championship is the 17th edition of the football tournament and will feature 24 national teams. The tournament will take place in Germany from 14 June to 14 July. As the host nation, Germany has automatically qualified for the final. The other 23 vouchers will be drawn through qualifiers and play-offs.

History of the European Football Championship

Henri Delaunay is a man who has often proposed the idea of European championships for national teams. His idea was taken up by a number of individuals such as Ottorino Barassi (later to become President of the Italian Football Federation), Jose Kraay (Secretary General of the Belgian Royal Union). The 1952 meeting in Zurich discussed the formation of a European Union. It was only two years later, in 1954, that another conference adopted the decision to create the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). This decision marked the start of preparations for the first UEFA European Championship.

Only 17 teams took part in the first tournament in 1960. The final was played in Paris. The USSR team went down in history as the first country to win the 1960 European Nations’ Cup, scoring the decisive goal against Yugoslavia in extra time in the 114th minute.

Results of the previous UEFA European Championships

2028, 2032 UEFA European Football Championship

The 2028 UEFA European Football Championship is expected to be the first ever tournament involving 32 teams.

The venue of Euro 2028 and Euro 2032 will be announced at the UEFA Congress in September 2023.

Keep an eye on the dates of the Euro UEFA and other events in our Sports events calendar.