Coaches discuss key details that made the difference at UEFA EURO 2024

UEFA EURO 2024 did not come to an end when Spain lifted the trophy after victory over England in Berlin.

UEFA's investment into such a world-class event goes well beyond the final whistle and this week, with the help of EURO 2024 hosts the German Football Association (DFB), we welcomed back national team coaches and technical directors from across Europe to Germany to review the action and analyse the key tactical trends from the tournament.

As well as dissecting the important moments from the summer, the conference offered coaches and technical directors the important opportunity to pay tribute to champions Spain and discuss competition matters with their colleagues from across the continent.

Tactical trends of a high-quality tournament

Studying the tactical elements of EURO tournaments began in 1996 and since then, we have worked with some of Europe's best-known coaches to understand ongoing technical developments within the game.

UEFA's team of technical observers, led by Fabio Capello, studied all the action alongside the UEFA performance analysis team, presenting their elite-level observations in the EURO 2024 technical report, which is freely shared with national team coaches and the wider coaching community, ultimately to help raise the standard of the game at every level across Europe and beyond.

For those in the room, which included representatives from FIFA and UEFA's sister confederations, there was a deeper dive into some of the tactical trends from the EURO, with Rafa Benítez (build-up), Packie Bonner (goalkeeping), David Moyes (pressing) and Michael O'Neill (final-third creation) presenting some of the decisive trends from Germany.

"This event is really important for us observers to pass on some important messages from EURO 2024 and for the coaches to receive the information, analyse their approaches and change or reinforce some of the things they are doing," Benítez said.

Honouring the four-time champions

"Work, work and more work."

That was the short summary Luis de la Fuente offered on how his Spain side became European champions though this, he admitted, only tells half the story. The 63-year-old was the guest speaker at Monday's event, sharing his insights and coaching philosophies with his fellow guests having secured his nation's record fourth EURO over the summer.

De la Fuente first joined the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) back in 2013 as the Under-19 national coach, winning the U19 EURO in 2015 before stepping up to the U21s and lifting that European title in 2019, also leading Spain to an Olympic silver medal in 2021. Appointed coach of the senior team in 2022, his familiarity with the young talent at his disposal created the perfect environment for success this time around.

"You need to be very well acquainted with the raw materials, your players," he said. "One of our great strengths is that all the players in our national team have been with us since the lowest age categories. These footballers have talent and believe in the message we are sending them."

Coaches and technical directors represented all 55 UEFA member national associationsUEFA via Getty Images

De la Fuente also believes the team culture and a shared work ethic are crucial to peak performance.

"In a team I manage, you need to play good football but also be a good person, have values and accept your role," he explained. "You must understand that you need to serve the greater good. I seek this balance between good people and good players. So when I need to motivate a player that has not been on the pitch, he knows that he is important for me."

Recap and discussion with four top coaches

France's Didier Deschamps, Georgia's Willy Sagnol, Germany's Julian Nagelsmann and Portugal's Roberto Martínez also took their place on stage to answer a series of questions about EURO 2024 and life as an international head coach.

France coach Didier Deschamps speaks during the panel discussion, moderated by UEFA head of technical education & development Olivier Doglia (left) and technical advisor Ioan Lupescu (right)UEFA via Getty Images

Each face their own unique challenges and shared their experiences with their colleagues in a series of candid discussions and debates that touched on a variety of topics. These included how to motivate and protect players from social media abuse, finding the right in-tournament formula for their teams and balancing the demands of club and international football.