| 1968 European Football Championship |
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Information About1968 European Football Championship |
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It was in this edition that the tournament changed its name from European Nations Cup to European Championship. There were also some changes in the tournament's qualifying structure, with the two-legged home-and-away knock-out stage, being replaced by a group phase. At the time, only four countries could play the final tournament which meant that there were only the semi-finals, the final and the third place match. The hosts were only announced after the qualifying round, which meant that they had to qualify, along with all the others, for the final stage. VENUES
QUALIFICATION The qualification competition was played in two stages: a group stage (taking place from 1966 until 1968 ) and the quarter-finals (played in 1968 ). There were eight qualifying groups of four teams each with the exception of group 4, which only had three. The matches were played in a home-and-away basis. Victories were worth 2 points, draws 1 point, and defeats 0 points. Only group winners could qualify for the quarter-finals. The quarter-finals were played in two legs on a home-and-away basis. The winners of the quarter-finals would go through, to the final tournament. Group phase
Quarter-finals 1st Leg - Saturday April 6, 1968 ''17:00 EET Vassil Levski Stadium , Sofia '' ''Referee: Gerhard Schulenburg (West Germany)'' 2nd Leg - Saturday April 20, 1968 ''16:00 CET Stadio San Paolo , Naples '' ''Referee: Gottfried Dienst (SWI)'' Italy won 4-3 on aggregate. 1st Leg - Saturday May 4, 1968 ''17:00 CET Ferenc Puskas Stadium , Budapest '' ''Referee: Laurens van Ravens (NET)'' 2nd Leg - Saturday May 11, 1968 ''19:30 MSK Luzhniki Stadium , Moscow '' ''Referee: Kurt Tschenscher (West Germany)'' Soviet Union won 3-2 on aggregate. 1st Leg - Wednesday April 3, 1968 ''19:45 GMT Wembley Stadium , London '' ''Referee: Gilbert Droz (SWI)'' 2nd Leg - Wednesday May 8, 1968 ''20:30 CET Santiago Bernabéu Stadium , Madrid '' ''Referee: Josef Krnavek (CZE)'' England won 3-1 on aggregate. 1st Leg - Saturday April 6, 1968 ''16:00 CET Stade Vélodrome , Marseille '' ''Referee: Erwin Vetter (West Germany)'' 2nd Leg - Wednesday April 24, 1968 ''16:30 CET Partizan Stadium , Belgrade '' ''Referee: Paul Schiller (AUT)'' Yugoslavia won 6-2 on aggregate. FINAL TOURNAMENT Semi-finals Wednesday June 5, 1968 ''18:00 CET Stadio San Paolo , Naples '' ''Referee: Kurt Tschenscher (West Germany)'' Italy through on coin toss. ''21:15 CET Stadio Comunale , Florence '' ''Referee: José Maria Ortiz de Mendibil (SPA)'' Third place match Saturday June 8, 1968 ''15:00 CET Stadio Olimpico , Rome '' ''Referee: Istvan Zsolt (HUN)'' Final Saturday June 8, 1968 ''22:15 CET Stadio Olimpico , Rome '' ''Referee: Gottfried Dienst (SWI)'' Final replay Monday June 10, 1968 ''21:15 CET Stadio Olimpico , Rome '' ''Referee: José Maria Ortiz de Mendibil (SPA)'' TOURNEMANT STATISTICS Top Scorers 2 Goals: Dragan Džajić (Yugoslavia) 1 Goal: Luigi Riva , Angelo Domenghini , Pietro Anastasi (Italy), Geoff Hurst , Bobby Charlton (England) Fastest Goal 11 Minutes: Luigi Riva (Italy vs Yugoslavia, Replay) Average Goals 1.4 Per Game |
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