2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
History - Facts - 2009 Squads - 2007 Standings - Winners
The European Under-21 Football Championship is a football competition organised by the sport's European governing body, UEFA. It is held every two years. It was preceded by the Under 23 Challenge Cup which ran from 1967 to 1970. A true championship was formed starting in 1972. The competition has existed in its current form since 1978 when the age limit was reduced to 21 and it has remained so since.
The Under-21 Championship final in 1978 set the standard for the rest to follow; back then, more than 25,000 crowded into the Pod Bijelim Bregom stadium in Mostar to see if Yugoslavia could defend a 1-0 lead from the first-leg in East Germany. They were not to be disappointed. Vahid Halilhodžić scored a first-half hat-trick in a breathtaking match that ended 4-4, giving the Balkan country the inaugural title 5-4 on aggregate.
The competition has been living up to expectations ever since, as the continent's most exciting young players offer a tantalising glimpse into what the future of European football might hold. A curling free-kick from Andrea Pirlo in the 2000 final, a diving penalty save from Petr Čech to help the Czech Republic win the trophy two years after that; the stars of tomorrow did it here first before making their name for club and country.
To be eligible for the campaign ending in 2006, players needed to be born in or after 1983. Many were actually 23 years old at the finals tournament, but when the qualification process began (late 2004) all players would have been 21 or under.
The Azzurrini have won the U21 championship on five occasions and travelled to Portugal in 2006 as champions after defeating Serbia and Montenegro 3-0 in the final in front 20,000 in Bochum two years previously.
Italy were first crowned champions in 1992 and successfully defended their title two years later when for the first time the semi-finals and final were played as a single tournament in France. Pierluigi Orlandini scored the extra-time winner for Italy in Montpellier in the first final to be decided by a single match. The final tournament was expanded to eight teams in Romania in 1998, when Spain interrupted Italy's run of success, but the Azzurrini were back on top in 2000, the year the group stage was introduced. The Czech Republic, the Soviet Union, France, England and the Netherlands, champions for the first time in 2006, are the tournament's other winners.
There is no Under-21 World Cup; instead, FIFA hold the Under-20 World Cup - formerly the FIFA World Youth Championship every two years. The European Under-21 teams have two European Championships instead of one European Championship and a World Cup. Under-21 matches are typically played on the day before senior internationals and where possible, the same qualifying groups and fixtures were played out. This will change for the 2006-7 Championship.
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 a host (Netherlands) had been chosen ahead of the qualification section. As hosts, Netherlands qualify automatically. Coincidentally, the Dutch team became the 2006 competition winners - the holders would normally have to go through the qualification stage. The other nations all go into 14 three-team groups and will play one match at home and one away. The winners of the 14 groups then play-off to decide the seven qualifiers alongside the hosts.
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