European football guide - history, national team titles, club titles

Confederation: Union of European Football Associations
Founded: 1954
Members: 53

Official Website: uefa.com

Description:

Football in Europe is built around UEFA - the Union of European Football Associations. This confederation includes every country in the European country plus a few more. Two countries outside of the continent - Israel and Kazakhstan - have gained membership and a number of countries without a seat in the United Nations maintain membership. The most prominent of those are the constituent parts of the United Kingdom - England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The major club competition in Europe (and indeed the world) is the UEFA Champions League, formerly called the European Cup. It was launched in 1955 and has evolved into a money-spinning behemoth that dominates the game. Originally only the league champions qualified but now the major countries get 2-4 total spots. Qualifying matches in the summer lead to a group stage in the fall and then to a knockout stage in the spring leading to a one match final in May.

The secondary club competition is the UEFA Cup which from 2009-10 will be known as the Europa League. It has always played second fiddle to the Champions League but has declined even further as the monetary rewards of Champions League competition grow and grow. Under its current format each country's cup winners qualify as well as clubs finishing in mid to upper table positions, with qualification criteria varying from country to country. Similar to the Champions League the tournament operates in a similar qualifying stages - group stages - knockout stages - single game final.

On the national team front the European Championship is contested every four years, in the two-year interval between World Cups. Initially a home and away series up until the semifinals the tournament is now organized along the lines of the World Cup, with a 15 month qualifying campaign leading to a one month finals tournament hosted at a single site. The most recent tournament, hosted by Austria and Switzerland, was won by Spain. Poland and Ukraine will co-host the next finals in 2012.

Total European Nations Cup - European Championship Titles:

3 Germany (inc. West Germany)

2 Spain

1 Czechoslovakia
1 Denmark
1 France
1 Greece
1 Italy
1 Netherlands
1 Soviet Union