The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European Football Associations). It took place in Austria and Switzerland (both hosting the tournament for the first time) from 7 to 29 June 2008.
The tournament was won by Spain, who defeated Germany 1–0 in the final. Spain were only the second nation to win all their group stage fixtures and then the European Championship itself, matching France's achievement from 1984. Spain were also the first team since Germany in 1996 to win the tournament undefeated.
Greece were the defending champions going into the tournament, having won UEFA Euro 2004. They recorded the worst finish in Euro 2008, losing their three group fixtures and collecting the least prize money. Throughout 31 matches, the participating nations totalled 77 goals, the same as the previous tournament.
Austria and Switzerland automatically qualified as hosts; the remaining 14 teams were determined through a qualifying tournament, played between August 2006 and November 2007. As European champions, Spain earned the right to compete in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa.
Venues[]
| Stadiums | Location | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Austria | ||
| Ernst-Happel-Stadion | Vienna | 53,295 |
| Wörthersee Stadion | Klagenfurt | 31,957 |
| Tivoli-Neu | Innsbruck | 31,600 |
| Stadion Wals-Siezenheim | Salzburg | 31,895 |
| Switzerland | ||
| St. Jakob-Park | Basel | 42,500 |
| Stade de Suisse | Bern | 31,907 |
| Stade de Genève | Geneva | 31,228 |
| Letzigrund | Zürich | 30,930 |
Participating teams[]
| Qualifier group | Team | Qualified as |
|---|---|---|
| N/A | Austria | co-host countries |
| Switzerland | ||
| Group A | Poland | winner |
| Portugal | runner-up | |
| Group B | Italy | winner |
| France | runner-up | |
| Group C | Greece | winner (title holders) |
| Turkey | runner-up | |
| Group D | Czech Republic | winner |
| Germany | runner-up | |
| Group E | Croatia | winner |
| Russia | runner-up | |
| Group F | Spain | winner |
| Sweden | runner-up | |
| Group G | Romania | winner |
| Netherlands | runner-up |
List of games[]
Group stage[]
| Date | Venue | Winner | Score | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | ||||
| 7 June 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel | Czech Republic | 1–0 | Switzerland |
| Stade de Genève, Geneva | Portugal | 2–0 | Turkey | |
| 11 June 2008 | Portugal | 3–1 | Czech Republic | |
| St. Jakob-Park, Basel | Turkey | 2–1 | Switzerland | |
| 15 June 2008 | Switzerland | 2–0 | Portugal | |
| Stade de Genève, Geneva | Turkey | 3–2 | Czech Republic | |
| Group B | ||||
| 8 June 2008 | Ernst-Happel Stadion, Vienna | Croatia | 1–0 | Austria |
| Wörthersee Stadion, Klagenfurt | Germany | 2–0 | Poland | |
| 12 June 2008 | Croatia | 2–1 | Germany | |
| Ernst-Happel Stadion, Vienna | Austria | 1–1 (draw) |
Poland | |
| 16 June 2008 | Wörthersee Stadion, Klagenfurt | Croatia | 1–0 | Poland |
| Ernst-Happel Stadion, Vienna | Germany | 1–0 | Austria | |
| Group C | ||||
| 9 June 2008 | Letzigrund, Zürich | Romania | 0–0 (draw) |
France |
| Stade de Suisse, Bern | Netherlands | 3–0 | Italy | |
| 13 June 2008 | Letzigrund, Zürich | Italy | 1–1 (draw) |
Romania |
| Stade de Suisse, Bern | Netherlands | 4–1 | France | |
| 17 June 2008 | Netherlands | 2–0 | Romania | |
| Letzigrund, Zürich | Italy | 2–0 | France | |
| Group D | ||||
| 10 June 2008 | Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck | Spain | 4–1 | Russia |
| Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, Salzburg | Sweden | 2–0 | Greece | |
| 14 June 2008 | Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck | Spain | 2–1 | Sweden |
| Stadion Wals-Siezenheim, Salzburg | Russia | 1–0 | Greece | |
| 18 June 2008 | Spain | 2–1 | Greece | |
| Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck | Russia | 2–0 | Sweden | |
Knockout stage[]
| Date | Venue | Winner | Score | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter-finals | ||||
| 19 June 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel | Germany | 3–2 | Portugal |
| 20 June 2008 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna | Turkey | 1–1 (a.e.t.) 3–1 (penalties) |
Croatia |
| 21 June 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel | Russia | 3–1 (a.e.t.) |
Netherlands |
| 22 June 2008 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna | Spain | 0–0 (a.e.t.) 4–2 (penalties) |
Italy |
| Semi-finals | ||||
| 25 June 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel | Germany | 3–2 | Turkey |
| 26 June 2008 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna | Spain | 3–0 | Russia |
| Final | ||||
| 29 June 2008 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna | Spain | 1–0 | Germany |
Broadcasters[]
UEFA member nations[]
| Country | Broadcasters |
|---|---|
| Europe | Eurosport |
| Albania | Top Channel, Digit-Alb |
| Armenia | Armenia 1 |
| Austria | ORF |
| Azerbaijan | Lider TV |
| Belarus | ONT |
| Belgium | SBS, RTBF |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | BHRT |
| Bulgaria | Diema |
| Croatia | HRT |
| Cyprus | CNC Plus TV, LTV |
| Czech Republic | Prima TV |
| Denmark | TV 2, Telenor |
| Estonia | ERR |
| Finland | Yle, MTV3 |
| France | TF1, M6 |
| Georgia | Rustavi 2 |
| Germany | ARD, ZDF |
| Greece | ERT, NOVA |
| Hungary | MTV, Sport 1 |
| Iceland | RÚV |
| Ireland | RTÉ |
| Israel | Charlton |
| Italy | RAI |
| Kazakhstan | Khabar |
| Kosovo | RTK |
| Latvia | LTV, Pervy Baltiysky Kanal Latvia |
| Lithuania | LRT |
| Macedonia | Alsat-M |
| Moldova | Prime |
| Montenegro | TV In |
| Netherlands | NOS |
| Norway | TV2, Telenor |
| Poland | Polsat |
| Portugal | TVI, Sport TV |
| Romania | TVR |
| Russia | VGTRK, Channel One, NTV Plus |
| Serbia | RTS |
| Slovakia | STV |
| Slovenia | TV3 |
| Spain | Cuatro, Canal+ |
| Sweden | TV4, Telenor |
| Switzerland | SRG SSR |
| Turkey | ATV, Digiturk |
| Ukraine | NTU, Poverkhnost |
| United Kingdom | BBC, ITV |
Rest of the world[]
| Country | Broadcasters |
|---|---|
| Latin America | ESPN, OTI, Televideo |
| Middle East and North Africa | Al Jazeera |
| South Asia | ESPN Star Sports |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | SuperSport, Canal+ Horizon |
| Australia | SBS, Setanta Sports |
| Brazil | Rede Record, Globosat |
| Canada | TSN, Sportsnet |
| Chile | Canal 13 |
| China | CCTV, Sina.com |
| Fiji | Fiji Television |
| Hong Kong | Now TV |
| Indonesia | MNC, RCTI |
| Japan | TBS, WOWOW |
| Macau | TDM |
| Malaysia | Media Prima, Astro |
| Mongolia | C1 Television |
| Myanmar | MRTV |
| New Zealand | SKY TV, Prime |
| Philippines | Solar Entertainment Corporation |
| Singapore | StarHub |
| South Africa | SABC, SuperSport |
| South Korea | KBS, MBC, SBS |
| Thailand | Channel 7, Modernine TV |
| United States | ABC, ESPN |
| Venezuela | Meridiano Televisión |
| Vietnam | K+, VTV |