European soccer is known to have some of the most competitive international play, and the Euros only comes second to the World Cup as it only includes national teams from Europe. With so many teams in Europe, it’s difficult to host, and even qualifying for the tournament is a tremendous feat.

The tournament dates back as far as 1960, hosted by France, where the Soviet Union defeated Yugoslavia 2-1 out of the four total eligible teams. Since then, the FIFA Euros has come a long way, with up to 24 nations now qualifying, allowing all European countries to dream about claiming the prestigious trophy. In this article, we’ll highlight three of the best Euros winners, what nations won the Euros, what year(s) they won or participated in the finals and what made the teams so dominant.

Best Euros winners: Top three national teams to win

#3. Portugal (2016 and 2004 runner-up)

To start this list, we have the Portuguese Men’s National Team, champions of the 2016 Euros. Starting in 2004, Portugal became a difficult team to play, advancing to the knockout stage with six points (two wins, one loss). At this time, England, France and the Netherlands were top contenders, but Portugal would slide past England in penalties and then the Dutch in a close semi-final that ended 2-1. It was thought that Portugal would have this in the bag, playing Greece in their home city of Lisbon only to lose 1-0.

By 2016, Portugal had gained much of the necessary experience to compete with the best teams, including a very intimidating French team. The peculiar thing about Portugal’s 2016 Euros run was that they didn’t play convincingly enough, advancing third place out of their group with three points (three draws). Portugal would then knock out Croatia in a 1-0 game before finishing off Poland 5-3 in penalties during the quarter-finals.

It was clear that grit and dedication had gotten the team this far, and Whales would fall short, losing to Portugal 2-0 in the semis. By the finals, everyone expected France to win (winners of the upcoming 2018 World Cup), but that dream was snagged by Portugal, winning 1-0 and giving Christiano Ronaldo his first-ever European Championship trophy. This fact alone puts Portugal on the list of best Euros winners ever.

#2. Germany (1996, 1992 runner-up and 2008 runner-up)

West Germany was already a very dominant team in Euro history, having won the tournament back in 1973 and 1980, but it wasn’t until after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the year 1992 that the unified nation of Germany would start to make its mark on the FIFA Euros. During this time, Germany would only advance to the next round with three points (one win, one draw and one loss), but play convincingly enough against Sweden in a 3-2 semi-final game. Denmark would cut Germany’s dreams short and steal their first European championship in a 2-0 win.

For the 1996 Euros, 16 teams participated, and Germany would finish first in their group with seven points (two wins, one draw), moving on to beat Croatia 2-1 in the first round of the knockout stage. Host nation England would be the next difficult challenge, although they wouldn’t stop revenge-seeking Germany on their championship run, beating England 6-5 in a close penalty shootout.

The finals took place in London between the Czech Republic and Germany, which the Germans would win 2-1 and nab their first European trophy since the West-Germany Era. Soon after, in 2008, the German national team would attempt to repeat their fortune from their 1996 run but would ultimately be defeated in the finals by a dominant Spanish team, still earning them a spot on the list of best Euros winners in history.

#1. Spain (2008, 2012 and 2024)

There’s no doubt that the Spanish Men’s National Team from 2008-2012 was one of the greatest of all time, only to re-showcase that same ability in the most recent 2024 Euros. The 2008 champions would have no problem advancing undefeated with nine points, narrowly escaping Italy in penalties during the quarter-finals. Next, they’d destroy Russia in a 3-0 semi-final game and take the Championship trophy from Germany in a 1-0 victory.

By the 2012 Euros, Spain was not only the defending champions of the European realm but winners of the World Cup in 2010. It was no surprise that the same returning team with few new components would advance with seven points (two wins, one draw) and knock out France early in a 2-0 victory during the quarters. Another close call allowed Spain to beat Portugal 4-2 in penalties to advance to the finals and crush Italy 4-0. 

While it may take other nations a while to reconvene and produce new players and tactics, it would only take Spain 12 more years to capture another Euros trophy in 2024. For this one, there was no doubt Spain was the most dominant team in the tournament, even by the final round, coming out of their group undefeated with three wins and nine points overall.

Not heading to a single shootout this time, Spain would defeat Georgia 4-1, then host nation Germany 2-1, then 2016 finalists France 2-1, then back-to-back runner-up England 2-1, making them unquestionably the best Euros winners in the history of the sport.