Who said that miracles only happen in fairy tales? Well, anyone who believes this to be true will certainly change their mind after reading this article and realizing how things can unexpectedly turn around and from a complete outsider, hidden in the shadows, one can become the absolute star that can’t simply go unnoticed.
The history of football has taught us one thing: underdogs often make a difference, stand out and prove everybody wrong. And they do this, against what public opinion states and despite all unfavorable odds set by betting sites in Spain or in other parts of the world. Some of these upsets are more than just unexpected twists, they are more like fairy tales illustrating stunning events taking place and shocking everybody!
Here is a list of five fairytale stores in European football. Note that the order in which they are presented is a simple list and not a countdown.
- Greece 1- 0 Portugal, Euro 2004
Greece won Portugal by 1-0 in the European Championship Final and became an instant Cinderella, going from the “ashes” to the top. Charisteas scored a goal that meant to upset everyone, leave Portugal in second place and make Greece the Champion for the first time in history.
In the beginning of the tournament Greece was at the bottom in the ratings of sportsbooks, but even while the team showcased a good performance as they went deeper things did not get much better from an odds’ perspective, because no one expected them to win in the end.
- Southampton winning Manchester United (6-3) in 1996, Premier League
This is one Premier League moment which is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in football. Manchester United, the reigning champions with a home-field advantage, were the undisputable favorites in the match against Southampton. But Le Tissier scored a stunning goal, which along with the other four goals and one own goal from Phil Neville on 89’ (!) made everybody at Old Trafford sit up and cheer for the great underdog winning the match!
- Leicester winning the EPL 2015-16
For some analysts, this is not the biggest upset, despite the fact that many people believe it to be the most unexpected victory in the history of the English Premier League. Leicester City had avoided relegation the previous year and this is probably why they were 5000/1 to win the league. But against these ‘dreadful’ odds, Leicester managed to lift the trophy.
- Chelsea 0 – 3 Sunderland, Premier League 2010
Again a Premier League moment! Chelsea was on the top of the league that season but it took three stunning goals to dethrone the Blues and shock everyone at Stamford Bridge. Sunderland’s side with the unforgettable goal from Nedum Onuoha on 45’ and the two equally amazing goals from Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck, left everybody speechless and surprised not only their opponents but nearly everybody watching the game.
- Denmark 2 – 0 Germany, Euro 1992
The entire European continent and in fact every football fan across the world was stunned by Denmark’s achievement in 1992. Denmark was an outsider not only because of its performance, but simply because they were not to participate in the competition in the first place. They were invited to play after Yugoslavia was incapable of participating due to the war. And this, pretty much tells the story of how they got in. But the rest is nowhere near to luck or chance.
Denmark was good and achieved a string of victories, leading all the way up to the final with Germany. But it was in this final that the team stunned everybody and wrote their own fairytale. With a 2-0 victory, Denmark got its first ever European title and became a star over a night!
