Spain have captured a record fourth title in the European Championship after beating England 2-1 during Sunday’s final in Berlin, Germany.
Mikel Oyarzabal scored the late winner in the 86th minute of the game to give Spain their fourth continental title. The Spaniards also won in 1964, 2008 and 2012 — broke a tie with Germany for the most titles in tournament history.
A final that exploded into life in the second half looked set for extra time after England substitute Cole Palmer cancelled out Nico Williams’ opening goal for Spain.
It was another substitute, Oyarzabal, who had the final word. The Real Sociedad forward was found just onside by a teasing Marc Cucurella cross to stab past Jordan Pickford and deliver Spain’s first major trophy since their golden generation won the last of three consecutive titles in 2012.
With the win, Spain broke a tie with Germany for most Euro titles and signalled the coming of age of a fresh generation of talent led by the 22-year-old Nico Williams and 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, who became the youngest player to ever feature in a World Cup or European Championship final, surpassing the record set by Brazil legend Pele in 1958.
And Spain left little doubt they were worthy champions, having won all seven of their games in the competition and becoming the first team in European Championship history to score 15 goals in a single tournament, breaking a tie with France’s winning side in 1984.
For England, however, it was a cruel way to lose a second straight European Championship final and extend the men’s team’s 58-year wait for a major trophy.
