UEFA Euro 2016 final facts for kids
| Germany vs Poland 0-0 (27103531294).jpg
The Stade de France hosted the final
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| Event | UEFA Euro 2016 | ||||||
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| After extra time | |||||||
| Date | 10 July 2016 | ||||||
| Venue | Stade de France, Saint-Denis | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Pepe (Portugal) | ||||||
| Referee | Mark Clattenburg (England) | ||||||
| Attendance | 75,868 | ||||||
| Weather | Sunny 28 °C (82 °F) 38% humidity |
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The UEFA Euro 2016 Final was the last match of Euro 2016. This was the fifteenth time the European Football Championship was held. It's a big football tournament for national teams, organized by UEFA every four years. The final game took place at the Stade de France in Paris, France, on 10 July 2016. The teams playing were Portugal and France.
The tournament started with 24 teams. They played in groups, and the top 16 teams moved on to the knockout stage. Portugal finished third in their group, Group F. They had draws against Iceland, Austria, and Hungary. Then, they beat Croatia in the round of 16. After that, they won against Poland in the quarter-final through a penalty shoot-out. Portugal reached the final by defeating Wales in the semi-final.
France won their group, Group A. They beat Romania and Albania, then drew with Switzerland. In the knockout rounds, France defeated the Republic of Ireland and Iceland. They then beat Germany in the semi-final to reach the final.
The final match was watched by 75,868 fans. English referee Mark Clattenburg was in charge. About halfway through the first half, Portugal's star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, had to leave the game due to an injury. He was replaced by Ricardo Quaresma. The first half ended with no goals. Neither team scored in the second half either, so the game went into extra time. Three minutes into the second part of extra time, Raphaël Guerreiro's free kick hit the crossbar for France. A minute later, Portugal scored! Eder shot from far away, and it went past France's goalkeeper Hugo Lloris. Portugal won the match 1–0, claiming their first major tournament title.
Pepe from Portugal was named the best player of the match. France's Antoine Griezmann received the player of the tournament award. By winning, Portugal became the tenth different country to win the European Championship. This was 12 years after they lost their first final at home in the 2004 tournament. France was the second host team to lose the final, after Portugal in 2004. This was the fifth European Championship final to be tied after 90 minutes. It was also the second final decided by extra time, like the first one in 1960. As champions, Portugal got to play in their first FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia in 2017.
Contents
About the Tournament
UEFA Euro 2016 was the 15th European Football Championship. It took place in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016. Teams played qualifying games from September 2014 to November 2015. 53 teams were in nine groups. The top two teams from each group, plus host team France, qualified. Four more teams joined after play-off games. In the main tournament, 24 teams were split into six groups of four. The top two teams from each group and the four best third-place teams moved to a knockout stage.
France had played in two European Championship finals before. They won as hosts in 1984 against Spain. They also won in 2000 against Italy with a golden goal. Portugal had played in one final before, losing to Greece at home in 2004.
The two teams had played each other 24 times before this final. France had won 18 times, Portugal 5 times, and they had one draw. France had won all their last 10 games against Portugal. All their previous big tournament matches (in Euro 1984, Euro 2000, and the 2006 FIFA World Cup) were French victories. Before the tournament, Portugal was ranked 8th in the world by FIFA, and France was 17th.
The final was held at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, a town near Paris. This stadium is one of the biggest in Europe. It was the largest venue for Euro 2016, holding up to 80,000 fans. The final was the seventh match played at the Stade de France during Euro 2016.
How the Teams Reached the Final
Portugal's Journey
| Opponent | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iceland | 1–1 |
| 2 | Austria | 0–0 |
| 3 | Hungary | 3–3 |
| R16 | Croatia | 1–0 (aet) |
| QF | Poland | 1–1 (aet) (5–3 p) |
| SF | Wales | 2–0 |
Portugal qualified for Euro 2016 by winning their group. They won seven games and lost one. In the finals, they were in Group F. Their first game was against Iceland on 14 June. Nani scored first for Portugal. But Iceland tied the game in the second half. The match ended 1–1.
Portugal's second game was against Austria on 18 June. The game was 0–0. Cristiano Ronaldo had a chance to score from a penalty kick, but he missed. He also had a goal disallowed for being offside. The game ended 0–0.
In their last group match, Portugal played Hungary on 22 June. It was a high-scoring game. Hungary scored first, then Nani tied it. Hungary scored again, then Ronaldo tied it. Hungary scored a third time, but Ronaldo tied it again with a header. The match ended 3–3. Portugal finished third in their group. Only four of the six third-placed teams moved on, and Portugal was one of them.
In the round of 16, Portugal played Croatia on 25 June. It was a very tight game with no goals for a long time. With only three minutes left in extra time, Ricardo Quaresma scored for Portugal after a shot from Ronaldo was saved. Portugal won 1–0.
Portugal's quarter-final game was against Poland on 30 June. Poland scored very early, in the first two minutes. Renato Sanches tied the game for Portugal with a powerful shot. The game stayed 1–1 through regular time and extra time. It went to a penalty shoot-out. Portugal won the shoot-out 5–3, with Quaresma scoring the winning penalty.
Portugal then played Wales in the semi-finals on 6 July. This was Wales' first big tournament since 1958. After a goalless first half, Ronaldo scored with a header five minutes into the second half. Three minutes later, Nani scored to make it 2–0. Portugal won and reached the final.
France's Journey
| Opponent | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romania | 2–1 |
| 2 | Albania | 2–0 |
| 3 | Switzerland | 0–0 |
| R16 | Republic of Ireland | 2–1 |
| QF | Iceland | 5–2 |
| SF | Germany | 2–0 |
France automatically qualified for Euro 2016 because they were the host country. They were in Group A. In their first game, they played Romania on 10 June. Olivier Giroud scored first for France. Romania tied it with a penalty kick. But Dimitri Payet scored a great goal near the end to give France a 2–1 win.
France's next game was against Albania five days later. Albania defended very well. France scored in the last minute of regular time with a header from Antoine Griezmann. Payet scored again in stoppage time, and France won 2–0. In their final group match, France played Switzerland on 19 June. The game ended 0–0. France finished as winners of Group A.
In the round of 16, France played the Republic of Ireland on 26 June. Ireland scored a penalty kick in the second minute to take an early lead. Griezmann scored two goals in four minutes in the second half to give France a 2–1 lead. Ireland had a player sent off with a red card. France won 2–1.
France's quarter-final opponents were Iceland. Iceland had beaten England in the previous round. Giroud scored first for France after 12 minutes. Paul Pogba scored eight minutes later. Payet and Griezmann also scored before half-time, making it 4–0. Iceland scored in the second half, but Giroud scored again for France. Iceland scored another goal, but France won the game 5–2.
In the semi-finals, France played Germany, the 2014 FIFA World Cup winners, on 7 July. Griezmann scored a penalty kick just before half-time to give France a 1–0 lead. With 18 minutes left, Griezmann scored again after the German goalkeeper failed to clear a cross. Germany tried to score, but couldn't. France won 2–0, their first win against Germany in a major tournament since 1958.
Before the Match
The special match ball for the knockout games and the final was called the Adidas Fracas. It was made by Adidas. This was the first time a different ball was used for the final than the group stages.
On 8 July 2016, UEFA announced the referee team. The main referee was 41-year-old English referee Mark Clattenburg. He had also refereed the 2016 UEFA Champions League Final and the 2016 FA Cup Final that year. This was his fourth game at Euro 2016.
Before the final, there were some problems with fans trying to get into the fan zone near the Eiffel Tower. Police had to control the crowds. There were also some fights outside the stadium after the match.
The closing ceremony happened before the game. It had 600 dancers and music. French DJ David Guetta and Swedish singer Zara Larsson performed the official tournament song. Before the match started, the stadium was full of moths! Workers had left the lights on the day before, which attracted many insects. Players and staff tried to swat them away.
France's starting team was the same as their semi-final. Portugal brought back Pepe and William Carvalho, who were out before. France played with a 4–2–3–1 formation, and Portugal played with a 4–1–3–2 formation. Portugal's manager, Fernando Santos, joked before the game, "I want us to win [the final] without deserving it!"
The Match
Game Summary
First Half
The final started around 9:00 p.m. on 10 July 2016. The weather was sunny and warm. Early in the game, Nani shot over the bar for Portugal. France's Moussa Sissoko also shot wide. In the 8th minute, Dimitri Payet tackled Cristiano Ronaldo hard. Ronaldo looked hurt. He left the field for medical help and came back with his knee strapped. Sissoko shot again, but it was deflected.
Midway through the half, Ronaldo had to leave the game on a stretcher. He was replaced by Ricardo Quaresma. Portugal changed their formation. Sissoko had another shot saved by Portugal's goalkeeper Rui Patrício. Cédric Soares got a yellow card for a foul. The first half ended with no goals.
Second Half
Neither team made changes at half-time. Four minutes into the second half, Sissoko fouled Pepe. There was a short delay when a fan ran onto the field. In the 59th minute, France made their first change, bringing on Kingsley Coman for Payet. Coman immediately passed to Griezmann, whose shot was caught by Rui Patrício.
João Mário got a yellow card for tripping Giroud. Griezmann headed wide from a Coman cross. Portugal then brought on João Moutinho for Adrien Silva. Coman passed to Giroud in the box, but Rui Patrício saved his shot. Both teams made their last changes. André-Pierre Gignac came on for Giroud, and Eder replaced Renato Sanches.
Nani's shot went over the bar. Sissoko had a powerful shot saved by Rui Patrício. Two minutes into stoppage time, Gignac hit the inside of the Portugal goalpost. Regular time ended 0–0, so the game went into extra time.
Extra Time
France started the first half of extra time. Eder won a free-kick. Quaresma sent in a pass, and Pepe headed it wide. Raphaël Guerreiro and Blaise Matuidi both got yellow cards. William Carvalho also got a yellow card. Just before half-time in extra time, Eder headed a corner, and Lloris pushed it away.
Three minutes into the second half of extra time, Laurent Koscielny got a yellow card for handball. Guerreiro's free kick hit the underside of the crossbar. A minute later, Portugal scored! Eder got the ball, held off a defender, and shot from far away. His low shot beat Lloris. Portugal led 1–0. France immediately brought on Anthony Martial. Rui Patrício saved a cross from Evra. Pogba got a yellow card. After two minutes of stoppage time, the final whistle blew. Portugal won the match 1–0.
Match Details
| 10 July 2016 21:00 CEST |
Portugal  |
1–0 (a.e.t.) |
 France |
Stade de France, Saint-Denis Attendance: 75,868 Referee: Mark Clattenburg (England) |
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https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/match/2017907/ |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
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Match Statistics
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After the Match
_at_the_Portugal_v._Poland_UEFA_Euro_2016_quarterfinal_(cropped).jpg)
Portugal's Pepe was chosen as the best player of the match. Antoine Griezmann from France received the player of the tournament award. Four players from Portugal and two from France were chosen for the UEFA team of the tournament. This win was Portugal's first ever competitive victory against France. It was also their first major trophy.
The win meant Portugal qualified for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia. This was their first time in that competition. Portugal became the tenth different country to win the European Championship. This happened 12 years after they lost their first final at home in 2004. France was the second host team to lose the final, after Portugal in 2004. This was the fifth European Championship final to be tied after 90 minutes. It was also the second final decided by extra time.
Renato Sanches from Portugal became the youngest player to win the European Championship. He was 18 years and 328 days old. UEFA later named him the Young Player of the Tournament. Cristiano Ronaldo said the victory was "one of the happiest moments of my career." Portugal's manager, Fernando Santos, praised the fans. He also joked about Eder, saying, "The ugly duckling scored! Now he's the beautiful swan!"
France's manager, Didier Deschamps, was very disappointed. He said it was "cruel to lose the final like that." He felt they missed a "unique opportunity" to win the Euros at home. His captain, Hugo Lloris, said France didn't make the most of their chances. But he congratulated Portugal for being mentally strong.
Portuguese newspapers celebrated the victory. Jornal de Notícias called it "the greatest moment in the history of Portuguese football." French newspapers like L'Équipe were sad and worried about the future of their team.
In the next big tournament, the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Portugal was knocked out early. France, still led by Deschamps, won that tournament. Portugal could not defend their European Championship title at UEFA Euro 2020. They lost in the round of 16. France also lost at that stage.
See also
In Spanish: Anexo:Final de la Eurocopa 2016 para niños
- France–Portugal football rivalry
- France at the UEFA European Championship
- Portugal at the UEFA European Championship
