The UEFA European Championship has existed since 1960. It ranks right next to FIFA World Cup as the most significant fulfillment for national teams. The first edition of the UEFA European Championship included only four teams; Czechoslovakia, France, Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia. Later on, the Championship expanded to include eight teams in 1980. Since then, the competition has been developed to incorporate more teams on two additional occasions. Although the first European Championship was held in 1960, the idea backing it is much older. The two most prosperous nations in the tournament’s history are Germany and Spain, with three titles each. Spain is the only nation to successfully defend its title, having done so in 2012. Germany has played the most matches (49), scored the most goals (72), and recorded the most victories (26). In 1984, France became the only nation to win all of its matches at a tournament (5 out of 5). In 2016, the total live audience for the expanded 51-match tournament grew to 2 billion viewers, compared to Euro 2012, which amounted to an increase of 100 million.
Top scoring teams by tournament:
1960: Yugoslavia, 6 goals
1964: Hungary, Soviet Union & Spain, 4 goals
1968: Italy, 3 goals 1972: West Germany, 5 goals
1976: West Germany, 6 goals
1980: West Germany, 6 goals
1984: France, 14 goals
1988: Netherlands, 8 goals
1992: Germany, 7 goals
1996: Germany, 10 goals
2000: France & Netherlands, 13 goals
2004: Czech Republic & England, 10 goals
2008: Spain, 12 goals 2012: Spain, 12 goals
2016: France, 13 goals