July 17th, 2024

Argentina records 16th Copa title, Spain beats England 2-1 for 4th Euro Championship

Spain and Argentina stand atop the world soccer rankings following their thrilling victories in their respective international competitions.

Spain got a goal from substitute Mikel Oyarzabel in the 86th minute to defeat England 2-1 and win the Euro 2024 championship. Argentina, with their heart-pounding 1-0 triumph in extra time over Colombia in the 2024 Copa America Final, stepped into the realm of “historical.”

Spain’s march to the Euro 2024 title was no fluke, as the team recorded impressive wins over host Germany, France and England, the three most prominent sides to win the competition. They beat the big three so decisively that neither could complain. With each resulting victory, one could see this team’s confidence growing.

The championship match was a tightly contested affair. It was scoreless before the names of Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams became heroes in Spanish lore. The two young stars combined for a brilliant goal to give Spain a 1-0 lead just 75 seconds into the second half. Yamal, who hails from one of the largest urban areas of Barcelona, just turned 17 on July 13 during the tournament. He broke a 66-year-old record held by the legendary Péle by being the youngest player to participate in a major international final. He broke another record, too, by becoming the youngest player to score or assist in the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals within a single Euro championship. It was his assist that put the Spaniards up 1-0.

Harry Kane, the English team’s beleaguered workhorse, was held scoreless in the match even though he shared the Golden Boot Award (most goals scored in the tournament) with two other players. Kane came out in the 61st minute of the game, and sub-Cole Palmer came in and scored the tying goal in the 73rd minute. He was outdone by Spain’s Mikel Oyarzabal, who scored with four minutes left in regulation, sealing the victory. The forward’s game and championship-winning tally was confirmed when the video replay showed that Oyarzabel was “onside” by the slightest margins.

The fans of Spain will remember this Euro 2024 as not just another win but one that was a surprise. This young Spanish national team was built to be good, but not this good, and especially not this fast. But they carved their way to greatness, winning seven games out of seven to take home the Euro 2024 title.

England will have to regroup for the World Cup in 2026. This was the Three Lions’ second Euro finals tournament loss in a row, losing to Italy in 2020.

The international soccer scene shifted from Berlin, Germany, to Miami, Florida, for a titanic struggle between Argentina, the defending Copa America and World Cup Champions, against red-hot Colombia, winners of 28 straight matches.

Unruly fans cause delay

This championship contest had a one hour and 22-minute delay due to a gate-crashing incident that, once again, displayed the madness surrounding far too many international soccer events. Thousands of fans, mostly identified as fans of Colombia, stormed the gates of Hard Rock Stadium. It is reported that many of these people did not have tickets to the game, but that didn’t stop them from breaking through barriers and storming past security officials. The graphic video of this incident has been played worldwide and sends a discouraging message to people, that message being: If you can’t find a ticket to a game, show up and storm the facility.

The problem with this behavior is it endangers the lives of every person at the event. In this case, hundreds were injured, including a little girl who was trampled. The league needs to implement heavier and better security precautions to prevent this scene from recurring at the upcoming 2026 World Cup in the United States. One suggestion would be to extend the perimeter around the stadium and only allow people with legitimate tickets to go through checkpoints.

Colombian fans were also involved in altercations with Uruguayan fans and players during the Copa semifinal match on July 10. Fights broke out in the stands, and the team raced to defend their family members who felt threatened by the Los Cafeteros’ supporters.

As for the match, both teams gave their all, with defense and strong goaltending, holding the affair scoreless through the 90 minutes of regulation play, which required two 15-minute periods of extra time. The hearts of Argentina fans sank when star Lionel Messi suffered a badly sprained ankle — through no visible contact — and was forced to the sideline at the 60-minute mark. A sideline video shot of Messi showed him in tears.

Each team had few legitimate scoring chances as the match reached its late stages. Both clubs were visibly exhausted, and it became a question of which team would make the great play or critical error that would open the door for a game-winning goal before the dreaded penalty-kick phase took effect.

Argentina prevailed on a goal by Lautaro Ramirez to write another magnificent chapter to their burgeoning legacy. Captained by the legendary Lionel Messi, who did not play a starring role in this tournament, the Argentine team played well enough to escape with this historic victory. They pulled off the feat of winning the Copa America (2021) and World Cup (2023) and repeating as Copa America Champions (2024). Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni put it best when he said, “This team just found a way to win. It was not beautiful esthetic soccer, but this game proved that this team can win playing different styles.”

Lionel Messi concurred with his coach’s assessment: “We just found a way to win. Championship teams do that.” Argentina’s victory also established a new mark in Copa America history with its 16th title.  As of this writing, it is unknown if Messi will step down from international competition or return for the 2026 World Cup, but no matter what he decides to do, his legacy and that of Team Argentina is secure.

2024 Copa America Final, Argentin, Euro 2024, soccer, Spain, Sports