Spain's footballers completed a sporting double for the country on Sunday night to claim a record fourth European championship with a 2-1 victory over England, hours after Carlos Alcaraz pulverised 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic to retain his Wimbledon crown.
Substitute Mikel Oyarzabal slid in Spain's winner four minutes from time to set up a grandstand finale after England substitute Cole Palmer curled in England's equaliser in the 73rd minute to cancel out Nico Williams' opener for Spain early in the second-half at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.
Oyarzabal's strike condemned England to successive defeats in European championship finals and means the country's top footballers have not won a major international competition since the 1966 World Cup.
Despite the setback, King Charles III congratulated the team and manager Gareth Southgate for reaching the final.
"Although victory may have eluded you this evening, nevertheless my wife and I join all my family in urging you and your support team to hold your heads high," he said on social media.
“All those who have participated in sporting activities at any level will know how utterly despairing such a result can feel when the prize was so near – and will join me in sending heartfelt sympathy, even as we congratulate Spain.
“But please know that your success in reaching the European championships final is a really great achievement in itself, and one that brings with it the pride of a nation which will continue to roar for the Three Lions today – and in the many triumphs which I have no doubt lie ahead.”
Unbeaten
Spain entered the 2024 tournament unheralded.
World Cup runners-up France were touted as favourites for the crown. A resurgent Germany under Julian Nagelsmann were also fancied along with England and Portugal.
But under coach Luis de la Fuente, Spain won all three of their games in the pool stages and saw off Georgia in the last-16, Germany in the quarter-finals and France in the semis.
Defender Marc Cucurella, who set up the winning goal, told journalists: "We deserved the trophy from the start.
"Not many people backed us but we kept quiet and did our job, which is to play football. We know how to suffer as a family."
Double victory
The victory rounded off an excellent day of success for Spanish sportsmen.
On Sunday afternoon at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in south-west London, Alcaraz retained his Wimbledon men's singles title following a straight sets romp past Djokovic.
Alcaraz, 21, claimed the trophy at the third Grand Slam tournament of the season with a 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 blitz of the 37-year-old Serb to become only the sixth man since tennis was opened to professionals in the late 1960s to lift the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season.
He joins a pantheon including Djokovic as well as Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
"It's a huge honour for me to be among those players who have achieved the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year," said Alcaraz.
"They are huge champions. I don't consider myself as a champion yet, not like them, but I'll keep going to build my path, my journey.
"This is the most beautiful tournament, most beautiful court and most beautiful trophy," he added.
Djokovic, who had surgery on a torn meniscus in his right knee in early June, conceded he had been outplayed in the showdown on Centre Court.
"My preparation for Wimbledon wasn’t as I would have it normally," he admitted. "There was hindrance obviously because of the injury. That probably had an effect, particularly in the opening rounds.
"But as the tournament progressed, I felt better and better and in some matches I played some really good tennis. Some matches I kind of battled my way through.
"But today, I saw that I was just half a step behind him, in every sense."
