1996 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

1996 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Tournament details
Host country Spain
Dates 12 March – 31 May
Teams 8 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s) 1 (in 1 host city)
Final positions
Champions  Italy (3rd title)
Runners-up  Spain
Third place  France
Fourth place  Scotland
Tournament statistics
Matches played 12
Goals scored 28 (2.33 per match)
Top scorer(s) Spain Raúl (3 goals)
Best player Italy Fabio Cannavaro

The 1996 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which spanned two years (1994–96), had 44 entrants. After the quarter-finals stage, Spain were chosen as the hosts of the final stages, consisting of four matches in total. Italy U-21s won the competition for the third consecutive time.

Format

No fewer than 13 newly independent nations competed for the first time - due mainly to the fall of Socialist rule in Europe in the early 1990s.

Russia, who competed in 1994 were joined by nine further former Soviet Union states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Ukraine.

The exclusion (for political reasons) of the team from Serbia and Montenegro, then known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia continued. Croatia, Slovenia and the Republic of Macedonia were three former states of Yugoslavia who did compete though.

Czechoslovakia became two separate nations - teams from the Czech Republic and Slovakia complete the list of new entrants.

The 44 national teams were divided into eight groups (four groups of 5 + four groups of 6). The group winners played off against each other on a two-legged home-and-away basis to determine the final four, one of whom would host the last four matches. The top five nations qualify for the Atlanta '96 Olympics.

Qualification

List of qualified teams

Country Qualified as Previous appearances in tournament1
 France Group 1 winner 5 (1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1994)
 Spain Group 2 winner 5 (1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990)
 Hungary Group 3 winner 3 (1978, 1980, 1986)
 Italy Group 4 winner 9 (1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994)
 Czech Republic Group 5 winner 6 (19782, 19802, 19882, 19902, 19922, 19942)
 Portugal Group 6 winner 1 (1994)
 Germany Group 7 winner 11 (19823, 19843, 19883, 19903, 1992)
 Scotland Group 8 winner 4 (1980, 1982, 1984, 1988)
1 Bold indicates champion for that year

Squads

Results

Quarter-finals

First leg

12 March 1996
Hungary  2–1  Scotland
Szanyó  14'
Zavadszky  79'
Report Glass  34'
Üllői út, Budapest, Hungary
Attendance: 15.000
Referee: Ryszard Wojcik (Poland)

13 March 1996
Germany  0–0  France
Report
Stadion an der Bremer Brücke, Osnabrück, Germany
Attendance: 20.000
Referee: Rune Pedersen (Norway)

13 March 1996
Portugal  1–0 Italy 
Porfírio  18' Report
Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal
Attendance: 25.000
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)

13 March 1996
Spain  2–1  Czech Republic
Dani  28'
Roberto  41'
Report Šmicer  50'
Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes, Granada, Spain
Attendance: 22.000
Referee: Michel Piraux (Belgium)

Second leg

26 March 1996
Scotland  3–1  Hungary
Dailly  42'
Hamilton  84'
Donnelly  86'
Report Egressy  30'

26 March 1996
France  4–1  Germany
Pirès  28', 32'
Maurice  41', 70'
Report Nerlinger  76' (pen.)
Stade Saint-Symphorien, Metz, France
Attendance: 24.077
Referee: Pierluigi Pairetto (Italy)

27 March 1996
Italy  2–0  Portugal
Vieri  41'
Peixe  55' (o.g.)
Report
La Favorita, Palermo, Italy
Attendance: 16.543
Referee: David Elleray (England)

27 March 1996
Czech Republic  1–2 Spain 
Vágner  54' Report Raúl  71', 89'
Velký strahovský stadion, Prague, Czech Republic
Attendance: 12.000
Referee: Alain Sars (France)

Semi-finals

28 May 1996
17:30
 Italy 1–0  France
Totti  49' Report
Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain
Attendance: 1,500
Referee: Peter Mikkelsen (Denmark)

28 May 1996
20:00
Spain  2–1  Scotland
Óscar  26'
De la Peña  35'
Report Marshall  28'
Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain
Attendance: 15,500
Referee: Rune Pedersen (Norway)

Third-place play-off

31 May 1996
France  1–0  Scotland
Moreau  50' Report
Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain
Attendance: 2.000
Referee: Karol Ihring (Slovakia)

Final

31 May 1996
Italy  1–1 (a.e.t.)  Spain
Idiakez  11' (o.g.) Report Raúl  42'
  Penalties  
Panucci
Pistone
Fresi
Nesta
Morfeo
4–2 De la Peña
De Pedro
Aranzábal
Raúl
Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain
Attendance: 34.600
Referee: Günter Benkö (Austria)

Goalscorers

3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
Own goal

Olympic qualifiers

External links

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