Subverted predictions and broken promises, stories to be handed down to posterity, fairy tales, businesses that remain engraved in stone: such as those dated 1976, 1992 or 2004 and branded Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Greece.
The uprising of the 'Cinderella' of football has claimed illustrious victims in Europe.
Some names?
Germany (twice in the final), Portugal and Holland.
Not just any teams, real football battleships, solid and noble formations, which lined up fine champions.
The 1976 case is emblematic.
The final phase of the European Championship is played in the former Yugoslavia, with the formula that includes the semifinals and the finals.
The poker of teams destined to compete for the title is formed by the hosts, Czechoslovakia, Holland and West Germany, with the latter two who, a couple of years earlier, had competed for the world title in Munich.
But the imponderable happens because, if the Germans pass the semifinal against Yugoslavia, the Netherlands are slapped (3-1 in extra time) sensationally by the Czechoslovakians.
Who could have foreseen it?
In the final, Viktor, Pivarnik, Ondrus, Panenka and teammates drag the West Germany of Beckenbauer and teammates - who is reigning world champion - up to penalties;
then, the mockery.
The surrender of the gods makes noise.
Indeed, it rewrites history.
Which is repeated in 1992, in Sweden, where another outsider wins: Denmark. The modalities of the Scandinavians' triumph are truly unique: Denmark is included in the qualifying round with Yugoslavia who, the year before, thanks to the Red Star Belgrade, won the Champions League in the final of the San Nicola di Bari. However, a war cruel devastates Bosnia and Croatia, leading to the disintegration of Yugoslavia and 'its' national team, which are missing Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Bosnia. In short, she loses the right to be represented in a sports festival dedicated to that Europe in which she demonstrates that she does not know how to live, nor live together. The Danes are thus fished out, whose players had already reached the vacation spots with their families.
Richard Moeller-Nielsen's team equalized on their debut with England, lost the derby against home team Sweden, but beat France and qualified for the semi-final against Van Basten's Holland which, in penalties, was made hypnotized by Peter Schmeichel and misses the decisive shot from 11 meters.
Danes in the final against Germany, who attack and are hit on the counterattack by the duo Jensen-Vilfort. The Danish triumph served, before the eyes of the incredulous and admired Swedish people.
In 2004 the company is from Greece which, in Portugal, goes beyond its limits, eliminating the reigning champions of France in the quarterfinals and the Czech Republic in the semifinals, which aims to revive the glories of 1976, when it was still a whole. one with Slovakia: 1-0 in the quarterfinals, 1-0 in the semi-finals and 1-0 in the final against host Portugal, which includes Rui Costa, Luis Figo and a young Cristiano Ronaldo, who leaves the field in tears after having played once. It will be redone in 2016, in France.
