In eight out of 11 cases, the team with more time to recover won the final.
It will be known on the evening of July 14 new European championThe winner of the trophy will be determined in Berlin national teams of Spain and England. Before the decisive match of Euro 2024 Spain have one more day off than England. In eight out of 11 cases this factor was significant. In addition, in the playoffs Spain played one less overtime than England.
On the way to the final, Furia Roja beat Georgia in the 1/8 and France in the semi-finals. In the quarter-finals, the Spaniards had to play 120 minutes with Germany.
England had extra time in the playoffs against Slovakia (1/8 finals) and Switzerland (1/4 finals), with a victory over the latter in a penalty shootout. Only the Netherlands advanced to the Three Lions semi-finals in regular time. Moreover, the English played the Orange one day after the Spain-France match.
An extra day of rest in such a gruelling tournament is a huge advantage, as England learned three years ago when they lost the Euro 2020 final to Italy, putting them in the same situation they would face in the 2024 European Championship decider.
And overall, in eight cases out of 11, the team that had more time to recover won the final. The only exceptions were the tournaments of 1992, 2004 and 2008, when the national teams of Denmark, Greece and the same Spain had one day less rest before the finals than their opponents.
| Year | The final | Days of rest before the final (winner) | Days of rest before the final (finalist) |
| 1960 | USSR – Yugoslavia – 2:1 | 3 | 3 |
| 1964 | Spain – USSR – 2:1 | 3 | 3 |
| 1968 | Italy – Yugoslavia – 2:1 (replay) | 2 before the first match | 2 before the first match |
| 1972 | Germany – USSR – 3:0 | 3 | 3 |
| 1976 | Czechoslovakia – Germany 2:2 (5:3 pen) | 3 | 2 |
| 1980 | Germany – Belgium – 2:1 | 4 | 3 |
| 1984 | France – Spain – 2:0 | 3 | 2 |
| 1988 | Netherlands – USSR – 2:0 | 3 | 2 |
| 1992 | Denmark – Germany – 2:0 | 3 | 4 |
| 1996 | Germany – Czech Republic – 2:1 | 3 | 3 |
| 2000 | France – Italy – 2:1 | 3 | 2 |
| 2004 | Greece – Portugal – 1:0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2008 | Spain – Germany – 1:0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2012 | Spain – Italy – 4:0 | 3 | 2 |
| 2016 | Portugal – France – 1:0 | 3 | 2 |
| 2020 | Italy – England – 1:1 (3:2 pen) | 4 | 3 |
| 2024 | Spain – England | Spain (4 days) | England (3 days) |
Source: Sportarena
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
