EURO on this day: 27 June
Wednesday, June 26, 2024
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On this day: Iceland's 2016 fairy tale took a stunning twist with victory against England in the round of 16.
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England 1-2 Iceland
(Rooney 4pen; R. Sigurdsson 6, Sigthórsson 18)
2016 round of 16, Nice
"They thought this would be a walk in the park," reflected man of the match Ragnar Sigurdsson after perhaps the biggest shock in EURO finals history: England eliminated by the smallest nation (in population terms) ever to reach a major finals.
Iceland's defend-deep-and-break-fast policy unsettled opponents in France. Although Roy Hodgson's side took an early lead in Nice, the Icelanders played on their opponents' nerves; Sigurdsson profited from a long throw to level, then Kolbeinn Sigthórsson landed another sucker punch as his shot squirmed past Joe Hart. England had 72 minutes to put things right, but nothing worked. The Icelandic fans' famous slow handclap after the game heralded Hodgson's resignation.
"I still get goosebumps from even thinking about it, just the feeling of it," reflected captain Aron Gunnarsson when speaking to UEFA.com years later. "You want to always relive that feeling, and the atmosphere was incredible. We didn't get enough credit for how we played that game, because that's probably one of the best games we've played together as a national team."
France 2-0 Spain
(Platini 57, Bellone 90)
1984 final, Paris
Michel Platini had captivated the continent – and opposition defences – all tournament, and the moment his ninth goal of the competition squirmed through goalkeeper Luis Arconada's hands at the Parc des Princes, France were firmly in the driving seat.
Les Bleus made it nine wins from nine thus far in the calendar year when Bruno Bellone broke away and coolly dinked his finish past Arconada, sending the home fans into raptures and leaving no one in any doubt as to who the dominant national team was at that time.
Other EURO fixtures on 27 June
2004 quarter-finals: Czech Republic 3-0 Denmark
2012 semi-finals: Portugal 0-0 Spain (aet, Spain won 4-2 on pens)
2016 round of 16: Italy 2-0 Spain
2020 round of 16: Netherlands 0-2 Czech Republic
2020 round of 16: Belgium 1-0 Portugal
