22 June 2004 - Yes, It Was A Very Unusual Result

On 22 June 2004, Sweden and Denmark played to a 2-2 draw, getting just the result they needed for both to advance in the Euros at the expense of Italy.

It was the final matchday of Group C. Italy started the day two points behind Sweden and Denmark, having drawn against both, while both had already beaten Bulgaria, Italy's opponent. In the event of a Sweden-Denmark draw, a win for Italy would only pull them level on points. As a tiebreaker, the rules looked to goal differential, then goals scored, but only as compared among the tied teams.

A draw between Sweden and Denmark would give all three teams the same goal differential, making goals scored the deciding factor. Denmark's match with Italy was scoreless, while Sweden-Italy finished 1-1. So a scoreless result between Sweden and Denmark would put Italy through, while a score draw of 2-2 or higher would eliminate the Italians.

Italy raised the possibility of such a result before the games, but Sweden co-manager Lars Lagerbäck dismissed any possibility of a fix, saying "Machiavelli might have been Italian and Italians might like to think in a Machiavellian way, but it would not be possible to play for a 2-2 draw against Denmark and I don't think it will end 2-2 – that is a very unusual result."

But 2-2 is what they got. Denmark took a 28th-minute lead from Jon Dahl Tomasson, then Sweden's Henrik Larsson equalized with a 47th-minute penalty. The Danes reclaimed the lead with another goal from Tomasson (66'), but Sweden again drew level, this time with a strike from Mattias Jonson (89'). Italy beat Bulgaria 2-1, but that was their last contest of the tournament.

11 June 2002 - Adieu, Les Bleus

On 11 June 2002, defending World Cup champions France were eliminated from the 2002 tournament with a 2-0 loss to Denmark in their final group stage match before a crowd of 48,100 at Korea's Incheon Munhak Stadium. Les Bleus finished at the bottom of their group with a single point, having gone scoreless in all three matches.

France started the day still in contention for the group's second place, needing a win against Denmark and a Uruguay win over Senegal. The French attack, however, was impaired by the absence of prolific striker Thierry Henry, who had been sent off in the previous match after a dangerous sliding tackle. And despite the presence of other French stars on the pitch, including Zinedine Zidane, Marcel Desailly, Patrick Vieira, and David Trezeguet, Les Bleus struggled to create pressure on the Danish goal.

The Danes had no such problem, taking a 22nd-minute lead with a strike from PSV winger Dennis Rommedahl (pictured, top). Striker Jon Dahl Tomasson (pictured, bottom), who had scored the match-winner for Feyenoord in that year's UEFA Cup, added a second in the 67th minute to seal the win.

Denmark advanced only to be eliminated by England 0-3 in the first knockout round.

22 June 2004 - Yes, It Was A Very Unusual Result

On 22 June 2004, Sweden and Denmark played to a 2-2 draw, getting just the result they needed for both to advance in the Euros at the expense of Italy.

It was the final matchday of Group C. Italy started the day two points behind Sweden and Denmark, having drawn against both, while both had already beaten Bulgaria, Italy's opponent. In the event of a Sweden-Denmark draw, a win for Italy would only pull them level on points. As a tiebreaker, the rules looked to goal differential, then goals scored, but only as compared among the tied teams.

A draw between Sweden and Denmark would give all three teams the same goal differential, making goals scored the deciding factor. Denmark's match with Italy was scoreless, while Sweden-Italy finished 1-1. So a scoreless result between Sweden and Denmark would put Italy through, while a score draw of 2-2 or higher would eliminate the Italians.

Italy raised the possibility of such a result before the games, but Sweden co-manager Lars Lagerbäck dismissed any possibility of a fix, saying "Machiavelli might have been Italian and Italians might like to think in a Machiavellian way, but it would not be possible to play for a 2-2 draw against Denmark and I don't think it will end 2-2 – that is a very unusual result."

But 2-2 is what they got. Denmark took a 28th-minute lead from Jon Dahl Tomasson, then Sweden's Henrik Larsson equalized with a 47th-minute penalty. The Danes reclaimed the lead with another goal from Tomasson (66'), but Sweden again drew level, this time with a strike from Mattias Jonson (89'). Italy  beat Bulgaria 2-1, but that was their last contest of the tournament.

11 June 2002 - Adieu, Les Bleus

On 11 June 2002, defending World Cup champions France were eliminated from the 2002 tournament with a 2-0 loss to Denmark in their final group stage match before a crowd of 48,100 at Korea's Incheon Munhak Stadium. Les Bleus finished at the bottom of their group with a single point, having gone scoreless in all three matches.

France started the day still in contention for the group's second place, needing a win against Denmark and a Uruguay win over Senegal. The French attack, however, was impaired by the absence of prolific striker Thierry Henry, who had been sent off in the previous match after a dangerous sliding tackle. And despite the presence of other French stars on the pitch, including Zinedine Zidane, Marcel Desailly, Patrick Vieira, and David Trezeguet, Les Bleus struggled to create pressure on the Danish goal.

The Danes had no such problem, taking a 22nd-minute lead with a strike from PSV winger Dennis Rommedahl (pictured, top). Striker Jon Dahl Tomasson (pictured, bottom), who had scored the match-winner for Feyenoord in that year's UEFA Cup, added a second in the 67th minute to seal the win.

Denmark advanced only to be eliminated by England 0-3 in the first knockout round.

France's early exit proved an aberration, as they advanced to the Final in the 2006 Cup, where they lost to Italy on penalty kicks after Zidane's ejection for headbutting Marco Materazzi.