Euro 1972 in Belgium
Euro 1972 was hosted by Belgium. The format was different from what European Championships have developed in nowadays. Only four countries participated in this tournament and these were West Germany, USSR, Belgium (hosts) and Hungary. The tournament was held from the 14th June until the 18th June, in which 2 semi-finals, a 3rd place playoff and the final were played. Four stadiums were used for this event.
Semi-finals were played at the same time on the 14th June. Belgium were drawn against West Germany, a game which was played in 20000-capacity Bosuil Stadium. West Germany won this game 2-1, with the German goals coming from prolific goal scorer Gerd Muller. In the other game, USSR beat Hungary 1-0 in the Emile Verse Stadium (28000). The USSR goal came in 53rd minute from Anatoli Konkov. USSR went directly into the final of the competition, having to face the West German power. The Third-place match was played on the 17th June, between the two losers of the semis, Hungary and Belgium. This game was played in the Sclessin Stadium, Liege, which has a capacity of 31000. Belgium won this game 2-1, goals coming from Raoul Lambert and Paul Van Himst. Lajos Ku scored the single Hungarian goal from a penalty.
1972 UEFA European Championship Final
Video of USSR vs West Germany.
The Final was played in the Heysel Stadium in Brussels with a 50,000 capacity. It was a battle between two superpowers; USSR and West Germany. However, it was a contest which was totally dominated by West Germany, as the score line of 3-0 suggests. Goals came from Gerd Muller (27' and 58'), who was named Top Scorer with 4 goals, and a goal coming from Herbert Wimmer in the 52nd minute. This was the first European Championship title won by West Germany, which was followed by another major victory in 1974, when West Germany dominated the football world by winning the World Cup.
