The 2016 UEFA European Championship, also known as UEFA Euro 2016, was the final tournament to decide the quadrennial champion of UEFA's men's national football teams. Hosted by France in June and July of 2016, the tournament was won by Belgium, their first-ever Euro championship, who defeated the hosts France on penalty kicks in the semifinal. Spain entered as the two-time defending champion and were defeated in the final by Belgium in added time. It was the first time that both semifinal matches in a European championship required penalty kicks, with Belgium defeating France 6-5 and Spain defeating Portugal 3-1.
The tournament was noted for its strict security in the wake of the November 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, but the torunament was held without incident.
With the win, Belgium qualified for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, which they would also go on to win, and it began two straight years of Belgium being ranked No. 1 in the world in the FIFA rankings.
Group Stage[]
Group A Group B Group C Group D Group E Group F