Spain has already confirmed its presence in the 2015 Euro Cup to be held in Switzerland from July 2 to 27 and in which 16 teams will participate. It will be the fifth continental event of ours and the ninth major championship for a selection that, established as number 1 in the ranking and in his condition current world and Nations League championwill once again enter the pools as a candidate for everything.
The 1997 Euro Cup, played between Sweden and Norway, was the first international championship in which Spain officially participated.. Our team reached the finals after finishing third in their group (along with Sweden, Denmark and Romania) in the qualifying phase and beating England in the play-off. In the tournament, the team led by Ignacio Quereda surpassed the group stage after tying against France (1-1), fall to Sweden (0-1) and win Russia (1-0), finally falling to Italia (1-2) in semifinals, which is to date Spain’s best result in a European Championship. “We were invisible to the whole world despite being third in Europe”the captain of that team noted in MARCA, Arantza del Puerto.
Return to the international stage after 16 years of absence
Spain would disappear from the map until the 2013 Euro Cupheld in Sweden, a tournament for which they qualified after finishing second in a group in which they coincided with Germany, Romania, Switzerland, Kazakhstan and Turkey and beating Scotland in the play-off play-off. That goal by Vero Boquete after the 120th minute of the match returned Spain to a great competition. In Nordic lands, Spain would overcome the group stage after beating England (3-2), fall to France (0-1) and tie against Russia (1-1)subsequently falling in front of Norway (1-3) in the quarterfinals. Over there was born on hashtag #SoñarEnGrande that would accompany the team for years and that would make him believe in his possibilities.
The 2015 World Cup, held in Canada, was the seventh in history and the first for our team.. Spain achieved its qualification after leading a group that it shared with Italy, Czech Republic, Romania, Estonia and Macedonia. “We knew what our goal was and we didn’t stop until we achieved it”he remembered Vero Blowjob, captain of that team, in these pages. The tournament left a bittersweet taste due to the early elimination by not making it past the group stage after drawing against Costa Rica (1-1) and lose to Brazil (0-1) y South Korea (1-2). The debacle was the straw that broke the camel’s back and The players requested the dismissal of Ignacio Quereda as a coach, a milestone that would happen days later naming Jorge Vilda as his successor.
A new age
The change on the bench only spurred a team with great assets that continued to show itself to the world. Spain qualified for the 2017 Euro Cup, held in the Netherlands, after completing a perfect qualifying phase -eight wins in eight games- in a group in which they met with Portugal, Finland, the Republic of Ireland and Montenegro. However, the balloon gradually deflated. After winning Portugal (2-0) in the debut, ours fell against England (0-2) y Scotland (0-1), being eliminated in the quarterfinals after losing to Austria (0-0, 3-5) on penalties.
Spain repeated its roadmap for the 2019 World Cup, held in France, signing an immaculate qualifying phase in a group that shared with Austria, Finland, Serbia and Israel. Already in the tournament, Spain passed the first phase after beating South Africa (3-1), lose to Germany (0-1) and draw against China (0-0), being eliminated in the round of 16 after losing to USA (1-2).
The 2022 Euro Cup, held in England, was a new stop for Spain. It won the ticket in a qualifying phase in which it finished first ahead of the Czech Republic, Poland, Moldova and Azerbaijan. Later in the tournament, they would go through the group stage as second after beating Finland (4-1), lose to Germany (0-2) and beat Denmark (1-0), being eliminated in the quarterfinals against England (1-2) in a duel decided in extra time.
First Spanish title
Spain’s last appearance on an international scale was the 2023 World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand, which crowned our team as the best in the world.. The team achieved qualification by leading a group that shared with Scotland, Ukraine, Hungary and the Faroe Islands. Already in the tournament, Spain surpassed the group stage as second after beating Costa Rica (3-0) y Zambia (5-0) and lose to Japan (0-4). Subsequently, they beat Switzerland (5-1) in the round of 16, Netherlands (2-1) in the quarterfinals, to Sweden (2-1) in the semi-finals now England (1-0) in the final.
What happened at the World Cup awards ceremony generated an institutional and sporting earthquake within the Federation that ended with Jorge Vilda dismissed from his positions as coach and technical director. His replacement on the bench was assumed by Montse Tomé, whose work at the head of the national team is unquestionable, achieving results and objectives: win the Nations League, qualification for the 2024 Olympic Games and now the qualification for Euro 2025. Spain continues to show up on the map…
