After beating England, Spain won the Euro Cup for the fourth time, also reigning at Wimbledon

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After beating England, Spain won the Euro Cup for the fourth time, also reigning at Wimbledon

Spain's players celebrate after winning the Euro 2024 final soccer match between Spain and England at the Olympia Stadium in Berlin on July 14, 2024 (AFP)

A last-minute goal in a thrilling final against England clinched Spain 's record fourth Euro Cup football title.

Spain won the match with two goals to one in the German capital Berlin on Sunday.

 In the final match played at Olympia Stadium with a capacity of 71,000 spectators, Nico Williams scored the first goal for Spain in the 47th minute and gave his team the lead.

However, England's Cole Palmer scored in the 73rd minute of the match to level the match at one.

In thrilling moments with just four minutes left in the match, Spain striker Michael Oyer Zabal scored the decisive goal to ensure Spain's win.

Spain lifted the title for the third time in 2012, 12 years later they managed to win the Euro Cup for a record fourth time in 2024.

The Spanish team has previously won the title in 1964 and 2008.

Germany has also lifted the Euro Cup trophy three times.

Claimed to be the birthplace of football, England reached the final for the second time in a row, having failed to win a major title on home soil since the 1966 World Cup.

The England team lost to Italy in the Euro Cup final three years ago in a penalty shootout.

Spain's fans celebrated on the ground and in the streets for the stunning victory.

"I did my job," Michael Oyarzabal said after the match, according to Reuters.

"I couldn't be happier," Spain manager Luis de la Fuente said after the match. A real team has become the champions of Europe. I said that I am proud of this team and I am even more proud today. It confirms what our players are. To me they are the best in the world.'

England team manager Southgate said, 'We fought until the very end in the final.'

Southgate, who has guided England to two Euro finals and a World Cup semi-final and quarter-final in eight years, is tipped to step down after the failure.

Southgate added: 'I think we didn't control the ball very well. They (the Spanish players) put pressure on you and you have to get out of that pressure and unfortunately we weren't able to do that and in the end it meant they had more control of the game.'

He added that credit goes to our players for reaching this point the way they fought and represented their country with pride. They were unbeaten until the last five minutes of the final game but everything changed in the last minute.'

He said: 'It was a good margin but I think they (Spain) were the best team in the tournament and they deserved to win.'

Spain also reigns at Wimbledon

Meanwhile, Spain's tennis player Carlos Alcaraz not only defeated Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final on Sunday, but the Spaniard's fourth Grand Slam win has ushered in a new generation in men's tennis.

He has won three of the last five majors and joins Bjorn Borg, Boris Becker and Mats Wilander as the only men to win four major titles at the age of 21 or younger.

It's a feat that overtook Djokovic, the retired Roger Federer and the injury-prone Rafael Nadal, three players who have won 66 Grand Slams in a golden era, with the 37-year-old Serb losing on Sunday. had reached its end.

Alcaraz's coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, once predicted that his compatriot would win 30 Grand Slams.

Carlos Alcaraz defeated seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in straight sets to retain his Wimbledon title.

The Spanish third seed produced a brilliant performance to win 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/4) and win the fourth Grand Slam of his young career.

Alcaraz tied the Open Era record for most Grand Slam wins by a 21-year-old or younger and is second only to Boris Becker, Jorn Borg and Mats Wilander.

And he is the sixth player to win the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back.
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