Global InformationUEFA European Championship top goalscorers information
A total of 910 goals have been scored in games at the men's 17 final tournaments of the UEFA European Championship, not counting penalties scored during shoot-outs.[1] Since the first goal scored by Yugoslav player Milan Galić at the 1960 European Nations' Cup, exactly 529 footballers have scored goals at the Euro tournaments,[2] of whom 38 have scored four or more.
Since in the beginning tournaments were contested between four teams and only two games were played, top goalscorers of the first three editions have scored only two goals.[3] This was bettered in 1972, when West Germany's Gerd Müller scored four goals. Four years later this was matched by his compatriot Dieter Müller and finally in 1984 France's Michel Platini have scored record 9 goals in just 5 games.[4] His record stood for more than three decades unitil Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 10th goal for Portugal at the UEFA Euro 2020.[5] He has later improved his tally and as of May 2024 stands at 14 goals in 25 appearances at the European Championship tournaments — also record.[6] The top 38 goalscorers have represented 15 nations, with 6 players scoring for Germany or West Germany, 5 for France, and 4 for Netherlands. In total, only 6 of them have scored at tournaments with maximum of 8 teams (prior to UEFA Euro 1996).
| Goals | ≥10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nos. of players | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 15 | 46 | 98 | 348 | 529 |
Platini holds the record for the most goals scored in a single tournament, with 9 goals in 1984.[7] The players that came closest were Antoine Griezmann in 2016 (with 6 goals) and Marco van Basten in 1988, Alan Shearer in 1996, Savo Milošević and Patrick Kluivert in 2000, Milan Baroš in 2004, and Ronaldo and Patrik Schick in 2020 (all with 5 goals). Across the 16 tournaments of the Euro, 31 players have been credited with the most tournament goals, with Ronaldo the only one to achieve this feat twice (in 2012 and 2020). Twelve of them scored at least four goals in a tournament, while Portugal's Nuno Gomes (2000), England's Wayne Rooney, Netherland's Ruud van Nistelrooy (both in 2004), Belgium's Romelu Lukaku, England's Harry Kane, France's Karim Benzema and Sweden's Emil Forsberg (all in 2020) are the only footballers to score at least 4 goals without being the top goalscorer. These 31 players represented 15 nations, the most (five) Germany or West Germany. Four played for Yugoslavia, while three represented France, Netherlands and Spain.
Of all the players who have played in the UEFA European Championship tournaments, only three have achieved an average of two goals per game played: Hungary's Dezső Novák and West Germany's: Gerd Müller and Dieter Müller — although Novák have appeared in only one Euro game.
- ^ "EURO final tournament goals: All you need to know". uefa.com. Union of European Football Associations. 1 January 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ a b "EURO - All-time Topscorers". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "EURO top scorers: all time and for every tournament". uefa.com. Union of European Football Associations. 1 January 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "EURO records: most appearances, top scorers, key stats". uefa.com. Union of European Football Associations. 1 January 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ^ "EURO 2020: Ronaldo breaks goalscoring record as Portugal beat Hungary 3-0". euronews.com. Euronews. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "Cristiano Ronaldo's EURO records". uefa.com. Union of European Football Associations. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "When Michel Platini scored nine goals in five games as France won Euro 84". The Guardian. 28 June 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2024.