Spain has won the Euro 2024, beating England 2-1 in a dramatic final in Berlin last night.
The Spanish team have now won four European Championships.
It was also the second European Championship final in a row which England have lost.
Spain’s Nico Williams scored the first goal of the night, which England’s Cole Palmer later equalised.
In the end, Mikel Oyarzabal’s goal for Spain in the 86th minute dashed England fans’ hope of a penalty shoot out in extra time.
“Positive messages lead to positive things,” Spanish Captain Álvaro Morata said.
“We have seen how Spain believed in us and well, I hope they are proud of this team, of everything that is coming in the future, because you have seen it.”
2024 CHAMPIONS: Spain 🇪🇸#EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/8jGoI5ZSv0
— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) July 14, 2024
Match winner Mikel Oyarzabal modestly put his performance down to being “lucky”.
“I have done my job,” he said.
“I did what I had to do at every moment to try to help. I was lucky enough to give victory.”
'It's not coming home'
For England, it was a painful moment after years of disappointments.
"It's hard to put into words how we're all feeling right now,” England Captain Harry Kane said.
“Tough game. We did well to get back into the game and struggled to build on that. To concede late on is really tough to take.
"We've been coming from behind all tournament, we've got it in the locker. We didn't take the next step and win it.”
We fell short of what we wanted to achieve this summer, but this group gave everything and have done us proud.
Your support in Germany and back home has been incredible. Thank you. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/YBivqQXfJe
— England (@England) July 14, 2024
Manager Gareth Southgate shrugged off questions about his own future and admitted Spain were the “"best team of the tournament".
"To get to another final... it was a privilege to have the opportunity,” he said.
“But to come up short is hard at the moment."
Southgate also predicted most of the England team would be around for the next World Cup, scheduled to take place in 2026.
Main image: Spain players celebrate after winning the UEFA Euro 2024, semi-final match at the Munich Football Arena, Germany. Picture date: Tuesday July 9, 2024. Supplied by: Alamy.com
