UEFA Euro 2020
16th edition of the quadrennial football championship / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).[1] To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the European Championship competition, UEFA president Michel Platini declared that the tournament would be hosted in several nations as a "romantic" one-off event, with 11 cities in 11 UEFA countries each providing venues for the tournament, making it the second tournament in the history after the 2007 AFC Asian Cup to have more than two nations co-hosting it.[2] Defending champions Portugal, who won UEFA Euro 2016 in France, were eliminated in the round of 16 by Belgium.[3] Italy won their second European Championship title by beating England on penalties in the final following a 1–1 draw after extra time.[4] The win came exactly on the 39th anniversary of Italy's 1982 FIFA World Cup Final win over West Germany.[5]
 Live It. For Real. | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host countries | 11 Azerbaijan Denmark England Germany Hungary Italy Netherlands Romania Russia Scotland Spain |
| Dates | 11 June – 11 July 2021 |
| Teams | 24 |
| Venue(s) | 11 (in 11 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Italy (2nd title) |
| Runners-up |  England |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 51 |
| Goals scored | 142 (2.78 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,099,278 (21,554 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | (5 goals each) |
| Best player(s) | Gianluigi Donnarumma |
| Best young player |  Pedri |
← 2016 2024 → | |
The tournament was originally intended to be played between 12 June and 12 July 2020.[6] However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe during that year, the tournament was postponed to June and July 2021, while retaining the name UEFA Euro 2020 and host venues. Alongside special rules regarding COVID-19, UEFA also allowed two extra substitutions[7] and implemented video assistant referee (VAR) for the first time.[8]
Initially, there were 13 venues chosen for the tournament but two were later dropped. Brussels was dropped in December 2017 after the city's Eurostadium was abandoned,[9] while Dublin was dropped in April 2021 because there was no guarantee that spectators could attend. Spain originally intended to use Bilbao as a host venue but later changed it to Seville to allow for spectators at matches.[10] UEFA chose Stadio Olimpico in Rome to host the opening match between Italy and Turkey, while Wembley Stadium in London was selected as a semi-final and final venue for the second time,[11] following the 1996 tournament at the original stadium of the same name.
The tournament was well received by fans and commentators, with the most goals per game in a European Championship since the introduction of the group stage, and only two goalless games. The refereeing style was also praised, with a conservative use of VAR and quick decisions made on the pitch.