2025 Under-21 EURO: Meet the finalists

The 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship final tournament runs from 11 to 28 June in Slovakia

The hosts were initially joined by the nine qualifying group winners and the three runners-up with the best records against the sides first, third, fourth and fifth in their groups. November's play-offs then decided the last three finalists.

We introduce the contenders.

Group A

Slovakia

Qualified automatically as hosts
U21 EURO best: 2000 (fourth place)
Last U21 EURO: 2017 (group stage)

Did you know?
Their only previous finals appearances came when hosting the first edition with a group stage in 2000, where they finished fourth, and when they qualified in 2017, finishing second in the group but missing the semi-finals on goal difference.

• U21 EURO record vs Spain: P8 L0 D1 L7 F12 A25
• U21 EURO record vs Italy: P3 D0 D2 L1 F3 A5
• U21 EURO record vs Romania: P6 W2 D2 L2 F4 A5

Spain

Qualifying Group B winners: P10 W9 D1 L0 F28 A5
Qualifying top scorer: Samu Omorodion (6)
U21 EURO best: Winners x 5 (1986, 1998, 2011, 2013, 2019)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (runners-up)

Did you know?
Reached their ninth final in 2023, two more than anyone else.

• U21 record vs Slovakia: P8 W7 D1 L0 F25 A12
• U21 record vs Romania: P5 W4 D0 L1 F8 A4
• U21 record vs Italy: P11 W4 D3 L4 F15 A15

Italy

Qualifying Group A winners: P10 W6 D4 L0 F27 A4
Qualifying top scorer: Pio Esposito (6)
U21 EURO best: Winners x 5 (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (group stage)

Did you know?
The only nation to win three titles in a row, Italy share the overall record of five with Spain.

• U21 EURO record vs Romania: P4 W3 D1 L0 F5 A1
• U21 EURO record vs Slovakia :P3 W1 D2 L0 F5 A3
• U21 EURO record vs Spain: P11 W4 D3 L4 F15 A15

Romania

Qualifying Group E winners: P10 W7 D1 L2 F23 A10
Qualifying top scorer: Louis Munteanu (5)
U21 EURO best: Semi-finals (2019)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (group stage)

Did you know?
Before 2019 Romania had only once been in the final tournament, in 1998; they are now in their fourth in a row.

• U21 EURO record vs Italy: P4 W0 D1 L3 F1 A5
• U21 EURO record vs Spain: P5 W1 L0 L4 F4 A8
• U21 EURO record vs Slovakia: P6 W2 D2 L2 F5 A4

Group B

Czechia

Qualifying Group I runners-up: P8 W4 D2 L2 F13 A11
Play-offs: 3-1agg vs Belgium (2-0 a, 1-1 h)
Qualifying top scorer: Václav Sejk (4)
U21 EURO best: Winners (2002)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (group stage)

Did you know?
Petr Čech was their final penalty shoot-out hero against France in their sole U21 EURO title in Switzerland.

• U21 EURO record vs England: P5 W1 D1 L3 F4 A8
• U21 EURO record vs Germany: P9 W2 D3 L4 F8 A13
• U21 EURO record vs Slovenia: P3 W1 D2 L0 F3 A2

England (holders)

Qualifying Group F winners: P10 W8 D1 L1 F41 A6
Qualifying top scorer: Harvey Elliott (7)
U21 EURO best: Winners x 3 (1982, 1984, 2023)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (winners)

Did you know?
Top scorers in the qualifying group stage as they secured a place at a tenth final tournament in a row, every one since the switch to odd-numbered years in 2007. Elliott was among several of the 2023 winning squad who were also part of this qualifying campaign.

• U21 EURO record vs Czechia: P5 W3 D1 L1 F8 A4
• U21 EURO record vs Slovenia: P2 W0 D1 L1 F3 A4
• U21 EURO record vs Germany: P12 W5 D5 L2 F19 A16

Germany

Qualifying Group D winners: P10 W8 D2 L0 F35 A10
Qualifying top scorer: Youssoufa Moukoko (6)
U21 EURO best: Winners x 3 (2009, 2017, 2021)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (group stage)

Did you know?
Equalled Italy's record in 2021 by reaching the final for the third straight tournament.

• U21 EURO record vs Slovenia: No past meetings
• U21 EURO record vs Czechia: P9 W4 D3 L2 F13 A8
• U21 EURO record vs England: P12 W2 D5 L5 F16 A19

Slovenia

Qualifying Group H winners: P8 W5 D2 L1 F13 A7
Qualifying top scorers: Tio Cipot (6)
U21 EURO best: Group stage (2021)
Last U21 EURO: 2021 (group stage)

Did you know?
This is the first time Slovenia have got through qualifying having played in the 2021 finals as co-hosts.

• U21 EURO record vs Germany: No past meetings
• U21 EURO record vs England: P2 W1 D1 L0 F4 A3
• U21 EURO record vs Czechia: P3 W0 D2 L1 F2 A3

Group C

Portugal

Qualifying Group G winners: P10 W9 D0 L1 F33 A6
Qualifying top scorer: Fábio Silva (8)
U21 EURO best: Runners-up (1994, 2015, 2021)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (quarter-finals)

Did you know?
Fábio Silva was the top scorer in the qualifying group stage and is within one of the career record of 15 U21 EURO goals (including qualifying) jointly held by Lampros Choutos (Greece), Tomáš Pekhart (Czechia) and George Puşcaş (Romania).

• U21 EURO record vs France: P3 W1 D0 L2 F3 A4
• U21 EURO record vs Poland: P9 W5 D2 L2 F11 A7
• U21 EURO record vs Georgia: P1 W0 D0 L1 F0 A2

France

Qualifying Group H runners-up, best three runners-up: P8 W5 D1 L2 F22 A6
Qualifying top scorer: Arnaud Kalimuendo (4)
U21 EURO best: Winners (1988)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (quarter-finals)

Did you know?
Have not gone out in the group stage in their five qualifications since that round was introduced.

• U21 EURO record vs Portugal: P3 W2 D0 L1 F4 A3
• U21 EURO record vs Georgia: P2 W2 D0 L0 F5 A2
• U21 EURO record vs Poland: P2 W2 D0 L0 F8 A1

Poland

Qualifying Group D runners-up, best three runners-up: P10 W7 D1 L2 F24 A10
Qualifying top scorers: Filip Szymczak (5)
U21 EURO best: Quarter-finals (1982, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1994)
Last U21 EURO: 2019 (group stage)

Did you know?
This is Poland's third qualification in five editions, having not made the finals between 1994 and 2017, when they were hosts.

• U21 EURO record vs Georgia: P6 W4 D1 L1 F17 A8
• U21 EURO record vs Portugal: P9 W2 D2 L5 F7 A11
• U21 EURO record vs France: P2 W0 D0 L2 F1 A8

Georgia

Qualifying Group C runners-up: P10 W6 D1 L3 F14 A10
Play-offs: 3-3agg, 7-6pens vs Croatia (1-0 h, 2-3aet a)
Top scorers: Nodar Lominadze (3)
U21 EURO best: Quarter-finals (2023)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (quarter-finals)

Did you know?
Conceded three aggregate equalisers in their play-off second leg in Croatia and were one penalty kick away from a shoot-out defeat before their eventual sudden-death victory. This is the first time Georgia have got through qualifying or even reached the play-offs, but they made their finals debut as co-hosts in 2023, topping their group ahead of Portugal, Netherlands and Belgium before losing on penalties to Israel in front of a U21 EURO record 44,338 crowd in Tbilisi – not the first time they had set a new best at the Paichadze Stadium in the course of the tournament.

• U21 EURO record vs Poland: P6 W1 D1 L4 F8 A17
• U21 EURO record vs France: P2 W0 D0 L2 F2 A5
• U21 EURO record vs Portugal: P1 W1 D0 L0 F2 A0

Group D

Finland

Qualifying Group E runners-up: P10 W6 D2 L2 F21 A8
Play-offs: 6-3agg vs Norway (5-1 h, 1-2 a)
Qualifying top scorer: Otso Liimatta (7)
U21 EURO best: Group stage (2009)
Last U21 EURO: 2009 (group stage)

Did you know?
Their 20 points in their group was the most Finland have ever managed in U21 qualifying and they then kept up their perfect record in play-offs having defeated Austria to go through in 2009, the only previous time Finland made the finals.

• U21 EURO record vs Netherlands: P8 W0 D1 L7 F5 A20
• U21 EURO record vs Ukraine: P4 W1 D1 L2 F4 A5
• U21 EURO record vs Denmark: P8 W2 D0 L6 F5 A16

Netherlands

Qualifying Group C winners: P10 W10 D0 L0 F32 A3
Qualifying top scorer: Noah Ohio (7)
U21 EURO best: Winners x 2 (2006, 2007)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (group stage)

Did you know?
Were the first team to qualify and the only side with a 100% record in their group.

• U21 EURO record vs Finland: P8 W7 D1 L0 F20 A5
• U21 EURO record vs Denmark: P1 W0 D1 L0 F1 A1
• U21 EURO record vs Ukraine: P6 W3 D1 L2 F11 A6

Ukraine

Qualifying Group F runners-up, best three runners-up: P10 W8 D0 L2 F20 A7
Qualifying top scorer: Nazar Voloshyn (4)
U21 EURO best: Runners-up (2006)
Last U21 EURO: 2023 (semi-finals)

Did you know?
Have qualified twice in a row for the first time.

• U21 EURO record vs Denmark: P5 W1 D1 L3 F7 A9
• U21 EURO record vs Finland: P4 W2 D1 L1 F5 A4
• U21 EURO record vs Netherlands: P6 W2 D1 L3 F6 A11

Denmark

Qualifying Group I winners: P8 W5 D2 L1 F18 A8
Qualifying top scorers: Mathias Kvistgaarden, Oliver Sørensen (3)
U21 EURO best: Semi-finals (1992, 2015)
Last U21 EURO: 2021 (quarter-finals)

Did you know?
In their fifth final tournament in six editions.

• U21 EURO record vs Ukraine: P5 W3 D1 L1 F9 A7
• U21 EURO record vs Netherlands: P1 W0 D1 L0 F1 A1
• U21 EURO record vs Finland: P8 W6 D0 L2 F16 A5

U21 EURO head-to-head records include qualifiers.