UEFA Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 July 2012, was co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine (both first time hosts), and was won by Spain, who beat Italy in the final at the Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine.
| Mistrzostwa Europy w Piłce Nożnej 2012 (in Polish) Чемпіонат Європи з футболу 2012 (in Ukrainian) | |
|---|---|
Creating History Together | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host countries | Poland Ukraine |
| Dates | 8 June – 1 July |
| Teams | 16 |
| Venue(s) | 8 (in 8 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Spain (3rd title) |
| Runners-up | Italy |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 31 |
| Goals scored | 76 (2.45 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,440,896 (46,481 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Mario Mandžukić Mario Gómez Mario Balotelli Cristiano Ronaldo Alan Dzagoev Fernando Torres (3 goals each) |
| Best player(s) | Andrés Iniesta |
Poland and Ukraine's bid was chosen by the UEFA Executive Committee on 18 April 2007. The two host teams qualified automatically while the remaining 14 finalists were decided through a qualifying competition, featuring 51 teams, from August 2010 to November 2011. This was the last European Championship to employ the 16-team finals format in use since 1996; from Euro 2016 onward, it was expanded to 24 finalists.
Euro 2012 was played at eight venues, four in each host country. Five new stadiums were built for the tournament, and the hosts invested heavily in improving infrastructure such as railways and roads at UEFA's request. Euro 2012 set attendance records for the 16-team format, for the highest aggregate attendance (1,440,896) and average per game (46,481).
Spain became the first team to win two consecutive European Championships, and also three straight major tournaments (Euro 2008, 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012). Spain had already gained entry to the 2013 Confederations Cup by winning the World Cup, so runners-up Italy qualified instead. As at Euro 2008 in Austria and Switzerland, both 2012 host nations were eliminated in the group stage.
There were several players ending on a total of 3 goals but because Fernando Torres made an assist and played the fewest minutes of the players who scored three goals, he was named as the Golden Boot winner for the tournament.