30 June 1996 - Bierhoff Strikes Gold

On 30 June 1996, Germany won the UEFA Euro Final with a golden goal in the 95th minute, defeating the Czech Republic 2-1 before a crowd of 73,611 at London's Wembley Stadium.

The teams met earlier in the tournament during the group stage. Germany won by the comfortable margin of 2-0, with both goals coming in the first half.

The goals did not come so quickly for Germany in the Final, as the first half ended scoreless. The Czechs went ahead 1-0 in the second half when midfielder Patrik Berger converted a penalty kick in the 59th minute. In the 69th minute, with the Czech Republic still ahead, German manager Berti Vogts replaced midfielder Mehmet Scholl with forward Oliver Bierhoff. The substitution worked, as Bierhoff equalized for Germany with his first goal of the tournament four minutes later, and regulation time ended with the match tied 1-1.

The 1996 tournament was the first European championship to apply the Golden Goal rule, which meant that the game ended upon the scoring of a goal in extra time. If, after two periods of extra time, no goal were scored, the match would be decided by penalty kicks.

As it turned out, however, no penalty kicks were needed. Bierhoff scored his second goal of the match (and the tournament) in the 95th minute, giving Germany the 2-1 win and the 1996 UEFA Euro title. It was the first major tournament to be decided by a golden goal.

29 June 1950 - The Miracle On Grass

On 29 June 1950, the United States pulled off one of the most improbable upsets in football, defeating England 1-0 in a World Cup group stage match before a crowd of over 10,000 at the Estádio Raimundo Sampaio in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

England had dominated international football after World War II, winning 23 matches, drawing three and losing only four. They also had forward Stanley Matthews, considered by many to be the best footballer of the era. The 1950 tournament was England's first World Cup, as they had not entered the previous tournaments, and expectations were high. Oddsmakers pegged England as 3-1 favorites to win the title.

The United States, by contrast, had lost their last seven matches (a series stretching back to the 1934 World Cup) by the combined score of 45-2, including a 3-1 loss to Spain four days prior. Eight of the US starting 11 were US-born citizens, while the other three - forward Joe Gaetjens, defender Joe Maca, and the US captain, midfielder Ed McIlvenny - were citizens of Haiti, Belgium, and Scotland, respectively, who qualified under the rules at the time by declaring their intent to apply for US citizenship (though, of the three, only Maca eventually became a US citizen).

Matthews had missed England's first match, a 2-0 win against Chile, and was left on the bench against the US, as England's selection committee, over the manager's objection, opted not to change a winning side. The decision was heavily scrutinized after the match; however, even without Matthews, England appeared to be in control, dominating possession and taking 20 shots to the US's one.

It was the one that mattered, though. In the 38th minute, American defender Walter Bahr sent a high, arcing ball into the England penalty area. As English keeper Bert Williams rushed to collect it, Gaetjens ducked, sending the ball off the back of his head and into the net. England applied frantic pressure in an attempt to equalize, but were denied by a combination of the woodwork and the sensational play of American keeper Frank Borghi.

Although the US were eliminated from the tournament after their next match, a 5-2 loss to Chile, and did not qualify for another World Cup until 1990, the 1-0 victory over England is considered a pivotal moment for the US national team.

28 June 2006 - Yugoslavia Yu-Goes Away

On 28 June 2006, the Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro (the FSSCG) split into two separate associations: the Football Association of Serbia (the FSS) and the Football Association of Montenegro (the the FSCG). The split eliminated the last football remnants of a unified Yugoslavia, as all of its former republics now had their own associations.

The Yugoslavian national football team had existed in various forms since 1920, when it represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Its most successful squad during that period was the 1930 team, which reached the World Cup semifinals.

After a hiatus from 1941 to 1945 due to World War II, the team re-emerged under the banner of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. They enjoyed a strong period in the 1960s, finishing in fourth place at the 1962 World Cup and reaching the Final in both the 1960 and 1968 UEFA European Championships. At that time, Yugoslavia comprised six regional republics - Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia - as well as two autonomous provinces - Kosovo and Vojvodina.

In 1991, Slovenia and Croatia declared their independence, triggering the dissolution of the Socialist Federal Republic. In 1992, Serbia and Montenegro established the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Despite finishing at the top of their qualifying group for the 1992 UEFA European Championship, the Federal Republic was banned from participating in the tournament due to the ongoing civil wars among the former Yugoslav states. FIFA also banned it from participating in the 1994 World Cup.

In 2003, the Federal Republic officially dropped the name "Yugoslavia" and changed its name to Serbia and Montenegro for both the state and the national team. Montenegro then declared its independence from Serbia in 2006, resulting in the split between the two football associations and ending the last political union between former Yugoslav republics. FIFA recognizes the Serbian side as the successor to Yugoslavia.

At present, Serbia is at the top of its qualifying group for the 2010 World Cup, while Montenegro is near the bottom of its group.