July 9 – As proof of the depth of competitiveness of Europe’s nations, the Euro 2024 Championships have seen a record number of 17 draws so far at the end of playing time.
The last record for the number of draws was at France 2016 where 16 matches were drawn.
Of the 2024 drawn matches, six have been goalless, also a new record, beating the five goalless draws in the England 1996 tournament.
Spain vs France
Tonight’s quarter final between Spain and France will be played to a result and, if historical stats are an indicator, the match looks unlikely to be decided by penalties.
The two countries have played each other 36 times with Spain winning 17, France winning 13 and seven matches drawn.
Those 36 matches have also seen 103 goals with Spain scoring 64 and France 39.
At the European Championships they have played each other four times with France winning tow and Spain one. The drawn game did not go to penalties to find a winner as it was a group fixture.
The teams’ last met in the UEFA Nations League final at Milan’s San Siro in October 2021, Kylian Mbappé scoring at 80th-minute winner after Mikel Oyarzabal’s 64th-minute opener for Spain had been cancelled out two minutes later by Karim Benzema.
France have a habit of winning big games. That was only France’s second win in their last eight games against Spain (D1 L5), the other a 1-0 friendly success at the Stade de France on 4 September 2014; Spain won 2-0 at the same venue on 28 March 2017, the teams’ last friendly fixture.
This will be Spain’s sixth Euros semi-final, having won four and lost just one so far. That loss came in Euro 2020 when they were beaten 4-2 on penalties by eventual champions Italy.
It is also France’s sixth semi-final appearance. They have won three and lost two. In 2000 they beat Portugal 2-1 with a golden goal, while in 2016 they overcame Germany 2-0.
The match in Munich tonight is a match-up of two of Europe’s biggest football super powers and, whatever the scoreline, promises to be a Euro spectacle.
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