DENMARK 2-0 GERMANY

When the draw for the 1992 European Championships in Sweden was made, Denmark's name was not even in the hat. They had finished second in their qualifying group behind Yugoslavia but when the Yugoslavs were thrown out due to U.N. sanctions, Denmark stepped in to take their place. A shock win over favourites France took them through to the semi-finals, where they beat reigning champions the Netherlands in a penalty shoot-out to reach the final.

Standing in the way of a fairytale triumph for the Danes were world champions Germany, still with many of the players that had won the World Cup in Italy two years earlier. They were overwhelming favourites to beat Denmark in the final, and started out in impressive style. Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, one of the players of the tournament, saved well from Karl-Heinz Reidle, Stefan Reuter and Guido Buchwald in the first quarter of an hour as the Germans threatened to run riot.

Just after the quarter-hour, completely against the run of play, Denmark stunned their opponents with the opening goal. With Germany claiming a foul in the build-up, the ball fell to John Jensen on the edge of the area and he thumped the ball into the roof of the net. It was a rare goal from the Danish midfielder, but it gave his side a vital lead. Denmark held on to the lead until half-time, and were just forty-five minutes from the title.

For the second half, Germany brought on substitute Thomas Doll in an attempt to switch the match back in their favour. As hard as the world champions tried, Denmark held firm and dealt with everything their more illustrious opponents threw at them. Germany's frustration grew as time started to run out and with twelve minutes to go, Denmark scored a vital second goal. The ball fell to Vilfort on the edge of the German penalty area, and with defenders appealing for handball his shot hit the inside of the post and went in.

Denmark led 2-0 and Germany were now desperate for a way back, and made another change by bringing on Andreas Thom. With just nine minutes to go, he had no time to make any real impact and Denmark saw out the remaining minutes to become perhaps the most surprising winners of a major championship. Having initially failed to qualify, Denmark had beaten first the European Champions and then the World Champions to take the title.