Home > Blogs > Global Insights
Kicking goals beyond borders: Our UEFA EUROS 2024™ wrap-up
A month of football fever is over but the memories remain.
At WorldFirst, we’re proud to have been the official payment partner of UEFA EUROS 2024™, one of football’s most prestigious events that brings together football fans from around the world. Like many of you, we got wrapped up in the excitement and energy that comes with the UEFA tournament. We watched the finger-biting action from the stands, cheered for the teams from home and followed the players’ every move online.
Our involvement allowed us to be part of a global event that breaks down barriers.Through our partnership, over 2,800 WorldFirst customers from over 10 countries had the opportunity to attend the matches.
Just as football unites people from different backgrounds, we aim to transcend boundaries, making it easier for SMEs and global businesses to expand and succeed internationally. Our commitment to truly borderless commerce means that we’re here to support businesses in reaching new markets and achieving their goals.
The tournament may be over for another few years, but records were broken and history was made. The UEFA Euros 2024 is a statistician’s dream, with everything meticulously analysed and recorded, from the age of players to the passing accuracy of teams. Here, we share some notable figures and stats.
Key tournament statistics
Goals:
Total goals: A total of 117 goals were scored by 24 teams in 51 matches, across the month-long tournament.
Fastest goal: 23 seconds, scored by Nedim Bajrami (Albania), Albania vs Italy. This was also the fastest goal in EURO history.
Fastest goal in the knockout stage: 57 seconds, scored by Merih Demiral (Turkey), Austria vs Turkey.
Latest goal in normal time: 99 minutes 33 seconds, scored by Kevin Csoboth (Hungary), Scotland vs Hungary.
Players:
Youngest player: Lamine Yamal (Spain). He was just 16 years and 338 days when he walked onto the pitch to face Croatia during the group stage, making him not only the youngest player at this tournament, but in UEFA EURO history. He also holds the enviable title of youngest player to score, less than four weeks later, when he struck the equaliser against France in the semi-final. Not to mention youngest player to ever appear in a final. He’s one to watch.
Oldest player: Pepe (Portugal). The veteran defender was 41 years and 130 days when he lined up against France in the quarter-final match, proving that age is just a number.
Oldest scorer: Luka Modrić (Croatia). Considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time, Modrić became the oldest goal scorer during the Croatia vs Italy game, at 38 years and 289 days.
Most tournaments played: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal). The superstar forward has appeared at every UEFA EURO tournament since 2004, for a total of six. He’s also played the most matches (74) and scored the most goals (55). The second highest goal scorer is Harry Kane (England) who trails with 30 goals.
Most goals saved: Giorgi Mamardashvili (Georgia) stopped the ball from hitting the net 29 times across Georgia’s four matches.
Teams:
Most games won: Spain. At UEFA EUROS 2024™, they became the first team in the Euro annals to win all their games during a tournament without a penalty shootout. With their win against England at the final, they also became the team with the most engravings on the Euro Cup, tipping ahead of Germany with three Euro tournament wins. Spain also holds the title of most matches played (186), most matches won (125) and most goals scored (422). The second highest scoring team is Netherlands, with 366 goals.
Most possession: Portugal managed to hold onto the ball for an average of 64.8% of the time across their five games, when no other team in this tournament managed to reach even a 60% average.
Passing accuracy: Germany’s pass completion rate of 91.2% highlights how this football giant is able to dominate the field. Winners Spain had a passing accuracy of 89.7%, while runners-up England’s accuracy was 77.9%.
- Open up to 20 local currency accounts, with local sort codes, account numbers and IBANs
- Collect secure payments from 130+ marketplaces, overseas buyers and payment processing gateways
- Pay suppliers, partners and staff in 40 currencies without hidden fees
- Pay and get paid easily with local bank details on your invoices
- Lock in conversion rates to manage your currency risk
Interesting facts
Stadiums: 10 stadiums across Germany, with a combined capacity of over 600,000 seats hosted around 2.3 million fans.
Volunteers: A total of 16,000 volunteers from 125 countries helped make UEFA EUROS 2024™ such an outstanding success. They were chosen from almost 146,000 applicants.
Mascot: The official mascot for this tournament was Albärt the teddy bear. Previous mascots have included Pinocchio, a cockerel, two rabbits and two sets of twins.
How Earle Wines cultivates global trade with a personal touch
Learn how Earle Wines relies on strong partnerships and WorldFirst's support to manage global transactions while maintaining personal connections.
Dec / 2024
August 2024 UK Market Update
Stay informed with our comprehensive market update for August 2024. Explore key trends, economic indicators, and investment insights shaping the financial landscape this month.
Dec / 2024
Kicking goals beyond borders: Our UEFA EUROS 2024™ wrap-up
Relive the excitement of UEFA EURO 2024™ with WorldFirst. Discover key stats, records and the joy of one of football's biggest event.
Dec / 2024WorldFirst articles cover strategies to mitigate risk, the latest FX insights, steps towards global expansion and key industry trends. Choose a category, product or service below to find out more.
- Almost 1,000,000 businesses have sent USD$150B around the world with WorldFirst and its partner brands since 2004
- Your money is safeguarded with leading financial institutions
