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UEFA European Under-21 Championship#Under-21 Golden Player

{{Short description|European association football tournament for under-21 national teams}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}

{{Infobox football tournament

| name = UEFA European Under-21 Championship

| logo = UEFA European Under-21 Championship logo.svg

| imagesize = 300px

| organiser = UEFA

| founded = {{start date and age|1978}}

| region = Europe

| number of teams = 55 (total)
16 (finals)

| current champions = {{nowrap|{{fbu|21|England}} (3rd title)}}

| most successful team = {{nowrap|{{fbu|21|Italy}}
{{fbu|21|Spain}}
(5 titles each)}}

| broadcasters =

| website = {{url|https://www.uefa.com/under21/|uefa.com/under21}}

| current = 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

}}

The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the competition also serves as the UEFA qualification tournament for the Summer Olympics.

Italy and Spain are the most successful teams in the tournament's history, having won five titles each. England are the current champions, having beaten Spain 1–0 in the 2023 final.

History

File:Cup of the UEFA Under 21 Championship.jpg

The competition in its current form has existed since 1978. It was preceded by the Under-23 Challenge Cup, which ran from 1967 to 1970. Bulgaria won the inaugural Challenge Cup in 1967, defeating East Germany 3–2. As defending champions, they faced randomly drawn "challengers" for a single match in Bulgaria. They retained the title three times, twice more in 1967 and once in 1968.{{cite web |title=How the Under-21 EURO developed |url=https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/0282-184adb987357-c6661a2fbd1e-1000--how-the-under-21-euro-developed/ |website=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |access-date=6 February 2025 |date=19 June 2023}} By the final edition in 1970, only Bulgaria and Yugoslavia had won the competition.

A proper under-23 championship was then established, starting in 1972. It was held three times in the same format; the eight group winners contested the quarter-finals on a home-and-away basis. The semi-finals and final were also held over two legs. To overcome calendar issues, the qualifying groups were the same as the qualifying groups for the senior World Cup or European Championship, and the matches were played on the same day or weekend. This has changed starting with the 2006 edition, when a separate draw was held for the first time to form the qualifying groups.

At the UEFA conference in January 1976, the age limit was lowered to 21 for the 1978 tournament, and has remained so ever since. The rules at the time allowed each team to field two players over the age of 21. To be eligible for the campaign ending in 2027, players must be born in 2004 or later. Many may actually be 23 years old by the time of the final tournament; however, when the qualification process began (2025), all players would have been 21 or under.

In 1992, the Under-21 Championship became the European qualifying competition for the Olympic football tournament.

The tournament's record attendance was set during the knockout stage of the 2023 edition, when 44,338 spectators gathered for the match between hosts Georgia and Israel.{{cite web |title=Under-21 EURO finals attendance record broken |url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0283-1863c9fc94e8-975cd500087e-1000--under-21-euro-finals-attendance-record-broken/ |website=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|access-date=1 July 2023|date=1 July 2023}}

Format

Up to and including the 1992 competition, all entrants were divided into eight qualification groups, the eight winners of which formed the quarter-finals lineup. The remaining fixtures were played out on a two-legged, home and away basis to determine the eventual winner.

For the 1994 competition, one of the semi-finalists, France, was chosen as a host for the (single-legged) semi-finals, third-place playoff and final. Similarly, Spain was chosen to host the last four matches in 1996.

For 1998, nine qualification groups were used, as participation had reached 46, nearly double the 24 entrants in 1976. The top seven group winners qualified automatically for the finals, whilst the eighth- and ninth-best qualifiers, {{nftu21|Greece}} and {{nftu21|England}}, played-off for the final spot. The remaining matches, from the quarter-finals onward, were held in Romania, one of the eight qualifiers.

The 2000 competition also had nine groups, but the nine winners and seven runners-up went into a two-legged playoff to decide the eight qualifiers. From those, Slovakia was chosen as host. For the first time, the familiar finals group stage was employed, with the two winners contesting a final, and two runners-up contesting the third-place playoff. The structure in 2002 was identical, except for the introduction of a semi-finals round after the finals group stage. Switzerland hosted the 2002 finals.

In 2004, ten qualification groups were used, with the group winners and six best runners-up going into the playoff. Germany was host that year. For 2006, the top two teams of eight large qualification groups provided the 16 teams for the playoffs, held in November 2005. Portugal hosted the finals.

Then followed the switch to odd years. The change was made because the senior teams of many nations often chose to promote players from their under-21s team as their own qualification campaign intensified. Staggering the tournaments allowed players more time to develop in the under-21 team rather than get promoted too early and end up becoming reserves for the seniors.

The 2007 competition actually began before the 2006 finals, with a qualification round to eliminate eight of the lowest-ranked nations. For the first time, the host (Netherlands) was chosen ahead of the qualification section. As hosts, {{nftu21|Netherlands}} qualified automatically. Coincidentally, the Dutch team had won the 2006 competition – the holders would normally have gone through the qualification stage. The other nations were all drawn into fourteen three-team groups. The 14 group winners were paired in double-leg play-off to decide the seven qualifiers alongside the hosts.

From 2009 to 2015, ten qualification groups were used, with the group winners and four best runners-up going into the two-legged playoffs.

The 2015 finals was to be the last eight teams edition, as UEFA expanded the tournament to twelve teams starting from the 2017 edition.{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0ded0926c88b-7f7a6d0f17bc-1000--u21-final-tournament-expanding-to-12-teams/|title=U21 final tournament expanding to 12 teams|publisher=UEFA|date=24 January 2014}}

On 6 February 2019, UEFA's Executive Committee increased the number of participants in the finals to sixteen teams, starting from the 2021 edition.{{cite web |title=Aleksander Čeferin re-elected UEFA President until 2023 |url=https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/024e-0f8e67eadd56-6d0a2d03a701-1000--aleksander-ceferin-re-elected-uefa-president-until-2023/ |website=UEFA |access-date=7 February 2019 |language=en |date=7 February 2019}}

Results

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; text-align: center; width: 90%;"
rowspan=2|{{abbr|Ed.|Edition}}

!rowspan=2|Year

!rowspan=2|Hosts

!rowspan=28 bgcolor=FFFFFF|

!colspan=3|Final

!rowspan=28 bgcolor=FFFFFF|

!colspan=3 rowspan=2|Losing semi-finalists
(or third place match)

!rowspan=2|{{abbr|No. of
teams|Number of teams}}

Winners

!Score

!Runners-up

1

|1978

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|Yugoslavia}}

|1–0 / 4–4
5–4 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|East Germany}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Bulgaria|1971}} and {{fbu|21|England}}

|8

2

|1980

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|Soviet Union}}

|0–0 / 1–0
1–0 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|East Germany}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|England}} and {{fbu|21|Yugoslavia}}

|8

3

|1982

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|England}}

|3–1 / 2–3
5–4 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|West Germany}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Scotland}} and {{fbu|21|Soviet Union}}

|8

4

|1984

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|England}}

|1–0 / 2–0
3–0 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Italy}} and {{fbu|21|Yugoslavia}}

|8

5

|1986

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|1–2 / 2–1
3–3 on aggregate
{{pso|3–0}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|England}} and {{fbu|21|Hungary}}

|8

6

|1988

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|France|1974}}

|0–0 / 3–0
3–0 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|Greece}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|England}} and {{fbu|21|Netherlands}}

|8

7

|1990

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|Soviet Union}}

|4–2 / 3–1
7–3 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|Yugoslavia}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Italy}} and {{fbu|21|Sweden}}

|8

8

|1992

|Home-and-away basis

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|2–0 / 0–1
2–1 on aggregate

|{{fbu-big|21|Sweden}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Denmark}} and {{fbu|21|Scotland}}

|8

9

|1994

|{{flag|France|1974}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|1–0
{{aet}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Portugal}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|2–1

|{{fbu-big|21|France|1974}}

|8

10

|1996

|{{flag|Spain}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|1–1
{{pso|4–2}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|{{fbu-big|21|France|1974}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Scotland}}

|8

11

|1998

|{{flag|Romania}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Greece}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Norway}}

|2–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Netherlands}}

|8

12

|2000

|{{flag|Slovakia}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|2–1

|{{fbu-big|21|Czech Republic}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Slovakia}}

|8

13

|2002

|{{flag|Switzerland}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Czech Republic}}

|0–0
{{pso|3–1}}

|{{fbu-big|21|France|1974}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Italy}} and {{fbu|21|Switzerland}}

|8

14

|2004

|{{flag|Germany}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy|2003}}

|3–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Serbia and Montenegro}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Portugal}}

|3–2
{{aet}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Sweden}}

|8

15

|2006

|{{flag|Portugal}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Netherlands}}

|3–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Ukraine}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|France|1974}} and {{fbu|21|Serbia and Montenegro}}

|8

16

|2007

|{{flag|Netherlands}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Netherlands}}

|4–1

|{{fbu-big|21|Serbia|2004}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Belgium}} and {{fbu|21|England}}

|8

17

|2009

|{{flag|Sweden}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Germany}}

|4–0

|{{fbu-big|21|England}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Italy}} and {{fbu|21|Sweden}}

|8

18

|2011

|{{flag|Denmark}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|2–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Switzerland}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Belarus|1995}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Czech Republic}}

|8

19

|2013

|{{flag|Israel}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|4–2

|{{fbu-big|21|Italy}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Netherlands}} and {{fbu|21|Norway}}

|8

20

|2015

|{{flag|Czech Republic}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Sweden}}

0–0
{{pso|4–3}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Portugal}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Denmark}} and {{fbu|21|Germany}}

|8

21

|2017

|{{flag|Poland}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Germany}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|England}} and {{fbu|21|Italy}}

|12

22

|2019

|{{flag|Italy}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|2–1

|{{fbu-big|21|Germany}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|France|1974}} and {{fbu|21|Romania}}

|12

23

|2021

|{{flag|Hungary}}
{{flag|Slovenia}}

|{{fbu-big|21|Germany}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Portugal}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Netherlands}} and {{fbu|21|Spain}}

|16

24

|2023

|{{flag|Georgia}}
{{flag|Romania}}

|{{fbu-big|21|England}}

|1–0

|{{fbu-big|21|Spain}}

|colspan=3|{{fbu|21|Israel}} and {{fbu|21|Ukraine}}

|16

25

|2025

|{{flag|Slovakia}}

|

|

|

|colspan=3|

|16

26

|2027

|{{flag|Albania}}
{{flag|Serbia}}

|

|

|

|colspan=3|

|16

Performances by countries

class="wikitable sortable"
width=200|Team

!width=200|Winners

!width=200|Runners-up

!width=200|Third place

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|ESP}}

|bgcolor=gold|{{nowrap|5 (1986, 1998, 2011, 2013, 2019)}}

|4 (1984, 1996, 2017, 2023)

|2 (1994, 2000)

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|ITA}}

|bgcolor=gold|{{nowrap|5 (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004)}}

|2 (1986, 2013)

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|GER}}{{efn|Includes West Germany}}

|bgcolor=gold|3 (2009, 2017, 2021)

|2 (1982, 2019)

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|ENG}}

|bgcolor=gold|3 (1982, 1984, 2023)

|1 (2009)

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|RUS}}{{efn|Includes the Soviet Union}}

|bgcolor=gold|2 (1980, 1990)

|

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|NED}}

|bgcolor=gold|2 (2006, 2007)

|

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|SRB}}{{efn|Includes Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro}}

|bgcolor=gold|1 (1978)

|3 (1990, 2004, 2007)

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|FRA}}

|bgcolor=gold|1 (1988)

|1 (2002)

|1 (1996)

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|CZE}}

|bgcolor=gold|1 (2002)

|1 (2000)

|

bgcolor=gold|{{fbu|21|SWE}}

|bgcolor=gold|1 (2015)

|1 (1992)

|

{{fbu|21|POR}}

|

|3 (1994, 2015, 2021)

|1 (2004)

{{fbu|21|East Germany}}

|

|2 (1978, 1980)

|

{{fbu|21|GRE}}

|

|2 (1988, 1998)

|

{{fbu|21|UKR}}

|

|1 (2006)

|

{{fbu|21|SWI}}

|

|1 (2011)

|

{{fbu|21|NOR}}

|

|

|1 (1998)

{{fbu|21|BLR}}

|

|

|1 (2011)

{{notelist}}

Comprehensive team results by tournament

;Legend

{{col-start}}{{col-3}}

  • {{bg|gold|1st}} – Champions
  • {{bg|silver|2nd}} – Runners-up
  • {{bg|#cc9966|3rd}} – Third place
  • {{bg|#9acdff|4th}} – Fourth place
  • {{bg|#81c846|SF}} – Semi-finalists

{{col-3}}

  • QF – Quarter-finals
  • GS – Group stage
  • q – Qualified
  • {{border|width=3px|color=red|   }} – Hosts

{{col-3}}

  •  •  – Did not qualify
  •  ×  – Did not enter
  •  ×  – Withdrew before qualification / banned

{{col-end}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;"

! style="width:170px;"|Teams

! 1978

1980198219841986198819901992{{flagdeco|FRA|1974}}
1994		{{flagdeco|ESP}}
1996		{{flagdeco|ROU}}
1998		{{flagdeco|SVK}}
2000		{{flagdeco|SUI}}
2002		{{flagdeco|GER}}
2004		{{flagdeco|POR}}
2006		{{flagdeco|NED}}
2007		{{flagdeco|SWE}}
2009		{{flagdeco|DEN}}
2011		{{flagdeco|ISR}}
2013		{{flagdeco|CZE}}
2015		{{flagdeco|POL}}
2017		{{flagdeco|ITA}}
2019		{{flagdeco|HUN}}
{{flagdeco|SVN}}
2021		{{flagdeco|ROU}}
{{flagdeco|GEO}}
2023		{{flagdeco|SVK}}
2025 !! Total

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ALB|size=20px}}

| ×

××QF•••••×•••••••••••••••

! 1

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|AUT|size=20px}}

| •

ו••••••••••••••••••GS•••

! 1

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|BLR|size=20px}}

| colspan=8| {{small|Part of USSR}}

ו•••GS••GSstyle="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rd•••••••

! 3

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|BEL|size=20px}}

| •

•••••••••••GS••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•••••GS•GS•

! 4

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|BUL|size=20px}}

| style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF

•••••QF••••••••••••••••••

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|CRO|size=20px}}

| colspan=7| {{small|Part of Yugoslavia}}

×ו•GS•GS•••••••GSQFGS•

! 5

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|CZE|size=20px}}1

| QF

QF•••QFQFQFQFQF•style="background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:gold;"|1st••GS•style="background-color:#9acdff;"|4th•style="border:3px solid red;"|GSGS•GSGSq

! 16

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|DEN|size=20px}}

| QF

•••QF••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF••••••GS••style="border:3px solid red;"|GS•style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFGSGSQF•q

! 10

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|GDR|size=20px}}

| style="background-color:silver;"|2nd

style="background-color:silver;"|2nd•••••colspan=18| {{small|Part of Germany}}

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ENG|size=20px}}

| style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF

style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•••••GSGS••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndGSGSGSstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFGSGSstyle="background-color:gold;"|1stq

! 18

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|FIN|size=20px}}

| •

•••••••••••••••GS•••••••q

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|FRA|size=20px}}

| •

•QFQFQFstyle="background-color:gold;"|1st••style="border:3px solid red; background-color:#9acdff;"|4thstyle="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rd••style="background-color:silver;"|2nd•style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF••••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFQFQFq

! 12

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|GEO|size=20px}}

| colspan=7| {{small|Part of USSR}}

×ו•••••••••••••style="border:3px solid red"|QFq

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|GER|size=20px}}2

| ×

×style="background-color:silver;"|2nd•••QFQF•QFQF••style="border:3px solid red"|GSGS•style="background-color:gold;"|1st•GSstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:gold;"|1stGSq

! 15

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|GRE|size=20px}}

| •

••••style="background-color:silver;"|2nd••QF•style="background-color:silver;"|2nd•GS••••••••••••

! 4

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|HUN|size=20px}}

| QF

QF••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF••••QF••••••••••••style="border:3px solid red;"|GS••

! 5

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ISL|size=20px}}

| ×

×ו•••••••••••••GS••••GS••

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ISR|size=20px}}

| colspan=8| {{small|Member of OFC}}

•••••••GS••style="border:3px solid red;"|GS••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•

! 3

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ITA|size=20px}}

| QF

QFQFstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndQFstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:gold;"|1st•style="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:gold;"|1stGSGSstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•style="background-color:silver;"|2ndGSstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="border:3px solid red;"|GSQFGSq

! 23

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|NED|size=20px}}

| ×

••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•QF••style="background-color:#9acdff;"|4thGS••style="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="border:3px solid red; background-color:gold;"|1st••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFGSq

! 10

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|MKD|size=20px}}

| colspan=7| {{small|Part of Yugoslavia}}

×ו••••••••••GS••••

! 1

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|NOR|size=20px}}

| •

•••••••••style="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rd•••••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF••••GS•

! 3

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|POL|size=20px}}

| •

•QFQFQF••QFQF•••••••••••style="border:3px solid red"|GSGS••q

! 8

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|POR|size=20px}}

| •

•×•••••style="background-color:silver;"|2ndQF••GSstyle="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rdstyle="border:3px solid red"|GSGS•••style="background-color:silver;"|2ndGS•style="background-color:silver;"|2ndQFq

! 11

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ROU|size=20px}}

| •

•••••••••style="border:3px solid red"|QF••••••••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFGSstyle="border:3px solid red"|GSq

! 5

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|RUS|size=20px}}3

| •

style="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•••style="background-color:gold;"|1st•QF•QF•••••••GS•••GS××

! 7

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SCO|size=20px}}

| •

QFstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFQF•QF•style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•style="background-color:#9acdff;"|4th•••••••••••••••

! 6

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SRB|size=20px}}4

| style="background-color:gold;"|1st

style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF•style="background-color:#81c846;"|SF••style="background-color:silver;"|2nd•×ו••style="background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndGS••GSGSGS•••

! 11

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SVK|size=20px}}

| colspan=9| {{small|Part of Czechoslovakia}}

••style="border:3px solid red; background-color:#9acdff;"|4th••••••••GS•••style="border:3px solid red;"|q

! 3

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SVN|size=20px}}

| colspan=7| {{small|Part of Yugoslavia}}

×ו••••••••••••style="border:3px solid red;"|GS•q

! 2

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|ESP|size=20px}}

| •

•QFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:gold;"|1stQFQF•style="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rdstyle="border:3px solid red; background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:#cc9966;"|3rd••••GSstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:gold;"|1st•style="background-color:silver;"|2ndstyle="background-color:gold;"|1ststyle="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2ndq

! 17

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SWE|size=20px}}

| •

•••QF•style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFstyle="background-color:silver;"|2nd••QF••style="background-color:#9acdff;"|4th••style="border:3px solid red; background-color:#81c846;"|SF••style="background-color:gold;"|1stGS••••

! 8

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|SUI|size=20px}}

| •

•••••••••••style="border:3px solid red; background-color:#81c846;"|SFGS•••style="background-color:silver;"|2nd••••GSQF•

! 5

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|TUR|size=20px}}

| •

••••••••••GS•••••••••••••

! 1

|style="text-align:left;"|{{fbu|21|UKR|size=20px}}

| colspan=8| {{small|Part of USSR}}

ו••••style="background-color:silver;"|2nd••GS•••••style="background-color:#81c846;"|SFq

! 4

Total || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 12 || 12 || 16 || 16 || 16 ||

;Notes

Awards

= Player of the Tournament =

The Player of the Tournament award, formerly known as the Golden Player, is awarded to the player who plays the most outstanding football during the tournament. Since 2013, an official Player of the Tournament has been selected by the UEFA Technical Team.{{cite news|title=Thiago leads all-star squad dominated by Spain|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0252-0cd3add5c6c6-33fdf8fdc07a-1000--thiago-leads-all-star-squad-dominated-by-spain/|last=UEFA.com|date=21 June 2013|website=UEFA|access-date=13 May 2020}}

class=wikitable
Year

!Golden Player

!Ref.

1978

|{{fbuicon|21|YUG}} Vahid Halilhodžić

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1978/golden-player/index.html |title=1978: Vahid Halilhodžić |work=UEFA|publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020444/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1978/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1980

|{{fbuicon|21|USSR}} Anatoliy Demyanenko

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1980/golden-player/index.html |title=1980: Anatoliy Demyanenko |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020449/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1980/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1982

|{{fbuicon|21|FRG}} Rudi Völler

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1982/golden-player/index.html |title=1982: Rudi Völler |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020652/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1982/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1984

|{{fbuicon|21|ENG}} Mark Hateley

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1984/golden-player/index.html |title=1984: Mark Hateley |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622030710/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1984/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1986

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Manolo Sanchís

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1986/golden-player/index.html |title=1986: Manuel Sanchís |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621021031/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1986/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1988

|{{fbuicon|21|FRA|1974}} Laurent Blanc

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1988/golden-player/index.html |title=1988: Laurent Blanc |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622075601/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1988/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1990

|{{fbuicon|21|YUG}} Davor Šuker

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1990/golden-player/index.html |title=1990: Davor Šuker |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622074149/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1990/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1992

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Renato Buso

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1992/golden-player/index.html |title=1992: Renato Buso |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613113941/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1992/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=13 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1994

|{{fbuicon|21|POR}} Luís Figo

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1994/golden-player/index.html |title=1994: Luís Figo |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020844/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1994/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1996

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Fabio Cannavaro

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1996/golden-player/index.html |title=1996: Fabio Cannavaro |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622080017/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1996/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

1998

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Francesc Arnau

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1998/golden-player/index.html |title=1998: Francesc Arnau |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622080022/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=1998/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2000

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Andrea Pirlo

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2000/golden-player/index.html |title=2000: Andrea Pirlo |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020849/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2000/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2002

|{{fbuicon|21|CZE}} Petr Čech

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2002/golden-player/index.html |title=2002: Petr Čech |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621021036/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2002/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2004

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Alberto Gilardino

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2004/golden-player/index.html |title=2004: Alberto Gilardino |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020657/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2004/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2006

|{{fbuicon|21|NED}} Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2006/golden-player/index.html |title=2006: Klaas-Jan Huntelaar |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621020454/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2006/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2007

|{{fbuicon|21|NED}} Royston Drenthe

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2007/golden-player/index.html |title=2007: Royston Drenthe |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621021046/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2007/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2009

|{{fbuicon|21|SWE}} Marcus Berg

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2009/golden-player/index.html |title=2009: Marcus Berg |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622030715/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2009/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2011

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Juan Mata

|{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2011/golden-player/index.html |title=2009: Juan Mata |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622030729/http://www.uefa.com/under21/season=2011/golden-player/index.html|archive-date=22 June 2013|url-status=dead}}

2013

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Thiago

|{{cite web|title=2013: Thiago Alcântara|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0252-0cd3add5c6c6-33fdf8fdc07a-1000--thiago-leads-all-star-squad-dominated-by-spain/|date=26 July 2013|work=UEFA|publisher=Union of European Football Associations|access-date=29 June 2015}}

2015

|{{fbuicon|21|POR}} William Carvalho

|{{cite web |url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0ded97b0c8ea-16e5412906dc-1000--william-u21-euro-player-of-the-tournament/ |title=William named U21 EURO player of the tournament |work=UEFA |publisher=Union of European Football Associations |date=1 July 2015|access-date=3 July 2015}}

2017

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Dani Ceballos

|{{cite web|title=Spain's Dani Ceballos named Player of the Tournament|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0dee39848e21-bc7abea6d4a2-1000--spain-s-dani-ceballos-named-player-of-the-tournament/|website=UEFA|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2019

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Fabián Ruiz

|{{cite web|title=Fabián Ruiz named SOCAR Player of the Tournament|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0debfa089f1c-81ccbf635e03-1000--fabian-ruiz-named-socar-player-of-the-tournament/|website=UEFA|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2021

|{{fbuicon|21|POR}} Fábio Vieira

|{{cite web|title=2021 Under-21 EURO Player of the Tournament: Fábio Vieira|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/026a-12753900d92f-217aeb28542e-1000--player-of-the-tournament-fabio-vieira/|website=UEFA|date=6 June 2021|access-date=7 June 2021|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2023

|{{fbuicon|21|ENG}} Anthony Gordon

|{{cite web|title=England's Anthony Gordon named 2023 Under-21 EURO Player of the Tournament|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0283-1871d669de39-41d3412d964f-1000--player-of-the-tournament-gordon/|website=UEFA|date=8 July 2023|access-date=8 July 2023|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

=Top Scorer=

The UEFA European Under-21 Championship Top Scorer award, formerly known as the Golden Boot, is handed to the player who scores the most goals during the tournament. Since the 2013 tournament, those who finish as runners-up in the vote receive the Silver Boot and Bronze Boot awards as the second and third top goalscorers in the tournament, respectively.

class="wikitable"

!Year

!First place

!Goals

!Second place

!Goals

!Third place

!Goals

!Ref.

2000

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Andrea Pirlo

|3

|rowspan="7"| 

|rowspan="7"| 

|rowspan="7"| 

|rowspan="7"| 

|

2002

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Massimo Maccarone

|3

|

2004

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Alberto Gilardino

|4

|

2006

|{{fbuicon|21|NED}} Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

|4

|

2007

|{{fbuicon|21|NED}} Maceo Rigters

|4

|

2009

|{{fbuicon|21|SWE}} Marcus Berg

|7

|

2011

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Adrián

|5

|{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0253-0d7ff6448d42-1758257af8d2-1000--czech-striker-kliment-wins-golden-boot-award/|title=Czech striker Kliment wins Golden Boot award|website=UEFA|date=30 June 2015|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2013

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Álvaro Morata

|4

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Thiago

|3

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Isco

|3

|{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0deccecab816-02cd0af34df4-1000--morata-wins-golden-boot-in-spanish-clean-sweep/|title=Morata wins Golden Boot in Spanish clean sweep|website=UEFA|date=18 June 2013|access-date=1 July 2017|last=Adams|first=Sam|quote=2013 Under-21 finals top scorers
Golden Boot: Álvaro Morata, Spain – 4 goals, 1 assist
Silver Boot: Thiago Alcántara – 3 goals, 1 assist
Bronze Boot: Isco, Spain – 3 goals|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2015

|{{fbuicon|21|CZE}} Jan Kliment

|3

|{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Kevin Volland

|2

|{{fbuicon|21|SWE}} John Guidetti

|2

|

2017

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Saúl

|5

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Marco Asensio

|3

|{{fbuicon|21|POR}} Bruma

|3

|{{cite web|title=Saúl Ñíguez wins U21 EURO adidas Golden Boot|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0dee39df33c5-fb4d9cff43ce-1000--saul-niguez-wins-u21-euro-adidas-golden-boot/|website=UEFA|quote=Golden Boot: Saúl Ñíguez (Spain) – 5 goals, 1 assist
Silver Boot: Marco Asensio (Spain) – 3 goals, 1 assist
Bronze Boot: Bruma (Portugal) – 3 goals|date=30 June 2017|access-date=1 July 2017|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2019

|{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Luca Waldschmidt

|7

|{{fbuicon|21|ROU}} George Pușcaș

|4

|{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Marco Richter

|3

|{{cite web|title=Spain beat Germany for fifth U21 title|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0debfa089f1c-91909485f556-1000--spain-beat-germany-for-fifth-u21-title/|website=UEFA|access-date=30 June 2019|publisher=Union of European Football Associations|date=30 June 2019}}

2021

|{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Lukas Nmecha

|4

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Patrick Cutrone

|3

|{{fbuicon|21|POR}} Dany Mota

|3

|{{cite web|title=Germany's Lukas Nmecha wins U21 Top Scorer award|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/026a-12754894fa52-1023cfedc1d1-1000--top-scorer-award-nmecha/|website=UEFA|date=6 June 2021|access-date=7 June 2021|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

2023

|{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Sergio Gómez
{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Abel Ruiz
{{fbuicon|21|UKR}} Heorhiy Sudakov

|3

| 

| 

| 

| 

|{{cite web|title=Under-21 EURO Top Scorers: Abel Ruiz, Sergio Gómez and Georgiy Sudakov tie|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0282-1857d7a3f6d6-662af86b9717-1000--trio-tie-as-top-scorers/|website=UEFA|date=8 July 2023|access-date=8 July 2023|publisher=Union of European Football Associations}}

= Euro Under-21 dream team =

On 17 June 2015, UEFA revealed an all-time best XI from the previous Under-21 final tournaments.{{cite web|title=Our all-time Under-21 EURO dream team|url=https://www.uefa.com/under21/news/0257-0dee6a710149-8caffbb4151d-1000--all-time-under-21-euro-dream-team/|date=17 June 2015|work=UEFA|publisher=Union of European Football Associations|access-date=25 July 2015}}

class="wikitable"
width="25%"|Goalkeeper

!width="25%"|Defenders

!width="25%"|Midfielders

!width="25%"|Forwards

valign="top"

|{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Manuel Neuer

|{{fbuicon|21|SRB}} Branislav Ivanović
{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Mats Hummels
{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Alessandro Nesta
{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Giorgio Chiellini

|{{fbuicon|21|ENG}} Frank Lampard
{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Andrea Pirlo
{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Xavi
{{fbuicon|21|GER}} Mesut Özil

|{{fbuicon|21|ITA}} Francesco Totti
{{fbuicon|21|ESP}} Raúl

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{commons category}}

  • {{Official website|https://www.uefa.com/under21/}}
  • [https://www.rsssf.org/tablese/europe-u21.html Tournament details] at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF)

{{UEFA European Under-21 Championship}}

{{UEFA under-21 teams}}

{{UEFA competitions}}

{{International football}}

{{UEFA European Under-21 Championship awards}}

European Under-21 Championship

Category:Under-21 association football competitions

Category:European youth sports competitions

Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1972

Category:1972 establishments in Europe

Category:European championships in association football