Spain spoiled England’s hopes of ending its 58-year trophy drought after Mikel Oyarzabal scored late to beat the Three Lions 2-1 and win Euro 2024 in Berlin on Sunday.
Nico Williams and Cole Palmer traded goals in the second half before Oyarzabal’s strike in the 86th minute secured Spain’s record fourth European championship.
It was the country’s first continental title since 2012, while England’s wait for another major men’s trophy continues.
The result was a fitting end to the tournament for Spain, widely regarded as the best team throughout Euro 2024. La Roja finished with an unblemished record, beating Croatia, Italy, Germany, and France prior to Sunday’s engrossing final.
Spain also set a new European championship record for most goals scored by a team with 15.
“I did my job, what I had to do at every moment,” Oyarzabal told reporters, according to Agence France-Presse. “I was lucky enough to score the winner. You value it a lot. And if you’re lucky enough to score the goal … it’s the best.”
England is now the first team ever to lose back-to-back Euro finals. Gareth Southgate’s squad fell to Italy on penalties in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium three years ago.
“Losing in a final is as tough as it gets,” England captain Harry Kane said. “We did really well to get back in the game at 1-1, and then we couldn’t use our momentum to push on. … It’s as painful as it can be in a football match.”
Luis de la Fuente’s squad started the game off as the superior team, controlling possession and registering the best chances in the first 20 minutes.
As the opening half progressed, both sides had chances to score but were careful not to let their guards down or take too many risks in attack.
Spain responded well to the adversity of losing midfield talisman Rodri, who was substituted at halftime with an apparent leg injury. La Roja took the lead almost immediately after the break when Lamine Yamal connected with Nico Williams to open the scoring.
Yamal got in behind Luke Shaw and crept across the top of the England box before pulling the trigger on a pass out wide to a surging Williams, who beat Jordan Pickford with a shot into the far corner of the goal in the 47th minute.
Like Rodri, Kane was also removed from the contest and replaced by England’s semifinal hero Ollie Watkins.
Spain pressed for a second goal before Palmer brought England level three minutes after coming on as a substitute with a composed strike with less than 20 minutes to play.
The contest was minutes away from heading to extra time, but Oyarzabal, who came on for captain Alvaro Morata, redirected Marc Cucurella’s low cross and scored from close range in the 86th minute.
England had one last chance to equalize late, but Dani Olmo came to Spain’s rescue with a goal-line clearance to stop Declan Rice’s 90th-minute header from a corner kick.
After the game, Rodri was announced as the Player of the Tournament, and Yamal was named the best young player – a day after his 17th birthday.
Southgate, who’s out of contract at the end of the year, was unwilling to address his future after the game.
“I don’t think now is a good time to make a decision like that,” he said, according to The Guardian. “I’m going to talk to the right people and, yeah, it’s just not for now.”
