UEFA EURO 1992 (champions - Denmark)
Denmark beat the newly reunified Germany 2-0 at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg on 26 June 1992, through John Jensen and Kim Vilfort. They were at the finals only because Yugoslavia had been suspended from international football that May and the place passed to the qualifying group's runners-up - one of three ways politics redrew this tournament.
Why this wins its question: Potted histories reduce 1992 to "Denmark were called up off the beach". UEFA's own pages give the actual mechanism - Yugoslavia suspended in May 1992, the place passing to the qualifying group's runners-up - and show Denmark's late entry was only one of three ways the map moved that year, alongside East Germany's withdrawal mid-qualifying and the USSR's qualified squad playing as the CIS. The report also carries what the summaries drop: Jensen's goal was his second in 48 caps, and Vilfort played through his daughter's illness.
Claims
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Denmark beat the newly reunified Germany 2-0 in the EURO 1992 final at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg on 26 June 1992, John Jensen and Kim Vilfort scoring in either half.
Denmark were at the finals as replacements. Group 4 winners Yugoslavia were suspended from international football in May 1992 and their place went to the section runners-up. Denmark then scraped through the group stage and knocked out holders the Netherlands on penalties in the semi-final.
Jensen's opener came against the run of play: Vilfort won a tussle with Andreas Brehme and passed to Flemming Povlsen, who cut the ball back for Jensen to smash it high into the net from the edge of the area despite Stefan Effenberg's attempt to block. It was only Jensen's second goal in 48 internationals. Vilfort settled it in the second half, bringing the ball under control, turning inside and shooting low in off Bodo Illgner's left post.
Peter Schmeichel kept Germany out throughout, saving from Stefan Reuter, Guido Buchwald, Jurgen Klinsmann and Effenberg and tipping a Karl-Heinz Riedle header over, with Kent Nielsen clearing another effort off the line. Captain Lars Olsen received the trophy from UEFA President Lennart Johansson, and the referee was Bruno Galler of Switzerland.
Vilfort had twice left the Danish camp during the tournament, and missed a group match, to visit his seven-year-old daughter, who was suffering from leukaemia.
Politics redrew the field three times over. German reunification took place during qualifying, so East Germany withdrew and West Germany competed as Germany; the Soviet Union broke up after its team had qualified as Group 3 winners, and the same squad played in Sweden as the CIS, representing 12 post-Soviet republics; and Yugoslavia's suspension brought Denmark in. Darko Pancev, top scorer in qualifying with ten goals, never played at the finals.
Staged from 10 to 26 June in Sweden, it was the ninth edition and the last with an eight-team final tournament, with 34 nations in qualifying and no third-place play-off. Dennis Bergkamp, Tomas Brolin, Henrik Larsen and Karl-Heinz Riedle shared the scoring lead on three goals each.