On 2 July 2008, Quito won the Copa Libertadores on penalties over Fluminense, 5-5 (3-1).
It was the first time in the final for both teams. Quito hosted the first leg at the Estadio Casa Blanca on 25 June and jumped out to an early lead when forward Claudio Bieler scored in the second minute. Midfielder Darío Conca equalized for Fluminense ten minutes later, but Quito then scored three straight goals (29', 34', 45') to lead 4-1 at the break. A goal from Fluminense's Thiago Neves in the 52nd minute set the final margin at 4-2.
The second leg, played at the Maracaña, started by following a similar pattern. Quito again took an early lead with a goal in the sixth minute and Fluminense again equalized in the 12th. But unlike the previous match, Fluminense were the ones to score three unanswered goals, with additional strikes in the 28th and 56th minutes. The match ended 3-1 at the end of regulation, for an aggregate score of 5-5.
Because the tournament did not consider away goals, the match went to extra time and, when nobody scored, to a penalty shootout. There, Quito goalkeeper José Francisco Cevallos blocked three of four shots, while his teammates converted three of their four kicks to win the shootout, 3-1.
On 1 July 2012, Spain successfully defended their title as European champions, crushing Italy 4-0 in the final.
After a long history of near-misses and a reputation for failing to live up to expectations, Spain finally won a major tournament when they beat Germany in the Euro 2008 final, then followed that by lifting the World Cup trophy over the Netherlands in 2010.
In their first match of Euro 2012, they faced Italy in the group stage and played to a 1-1 draw. Both teams eventually advanced, with the defending champions winning the group and Italy just two points behind in second.
Making their way through the knockout rounds, the two teams faced off again in the final, played before a crowd of over 63,000 at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev. But it was no repeat of the previous match, as Spain took control early and never let up, getting goals from David Silva (14'), Jordi Alba (41'), Fernando Torres (84'), and Juan Mata (88'), with the latter two coming on as late substitutes.
The match set several milestones--it was the largest margin in Euro final history and the first time a team had won three consecutive major international tournaments. It was also the 100th international victory for Spanish goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas.
On 30 June 2012, San Jose's Sam Cronin quickly recovered from an apparent injury after being struck by a well-placed ball from David Beckham.
The even occurred in stoppage time of San Jose's 4-3 win over Los Angeles. The Galaxy took a 3-1 lead in the first half with goals from Beckham and Landon Donovan, as well as an own-goal from Earthquakes defender Jason Hernandez, but Víctor Bernárdez pulled one back for San Jose in the 44th minute to cut the margin to 3-2.
In the second half, Cronin scored a 47th-minute equalizer, followed by Chris Wondolowski's go-ahead strike in the 61st minute. But the day's real highlight came during injury time.
With San Jose holding on to their lead, Cronin collided with a Galaxy player and dropped to the turf, holding his head. After several seconds, an irritated Beckham, who was 20 yards away, delivered a pinpoint kick that struck Cronin in the leg (then bounced up and hit the referee). His injury forgotten, Cronin immediately jumped up and protested to the ref.
Beckham received a yellow card, resulting in a one-game suspension, as San Jose got the win.
On 29 June 1997, Brazil won their fifth South American Championship/Copa América, beating hosts Bolivia 3-1.
The reigning World Cup champions rolled through the group stage, winning all three of their matches, then advanced to the final with a 2-0 win over Paraguay and a 7-0 demolition of Peru. There, they faced Bolivia, the only other team in the tournament with a perfect record up to that point.
They met at Estadio Hernando Siles in La Paz, whose altitude of almost 12,000 feet above sea level has proven to be an asset to Bolivia, as visiting teams often have trouble acclimating. The tournament organizers clearly intended to use the location strategically, as Bolivia played all of their earlier matches there, while Brazil had played all of theirs in Santa Cruz, with a much lower altitude of 1,365 feet.
But Brazil managed to adapt. After going into the break level at 1-1, they went ahead with a goal from Ronaldo in the 79th minute, then sealed the win with a 90th-minute strike from Zé Roberto.
On 28 June 2001, Boca Juniors won their second consecutive Copa Libertadores--and fourth overall--beating Cruz Azul on penalties, 1-1 (3-1).
The Argentinians were in their sixth final, having won it in 1977, 1978, and 2000 and going to penalties in two of those. Cruz Azul, meanwhile, were in the final for the first time. They hosted the first leg in Mexico City, where, despite a partisan crowd of 115,000 at the Azteca, Boca Juniors won 0-1 with an 85th-minute goal from Marcelo Delgado.
But in the return leg at the Bombanera in Buenos Aires, Cruz Azul forward Juan Palencia scored in the 42nd minute to bring the sides level. That score held through extra-time to send the final to a penalty shootout.
There, Palencia scored with Cruz Azul's first attempt, but the three shooters that followed him all failed to convert, while Boca went three-of-four from the spot to clinch the trophy. Since then, they have returned to the final four more times, winning it in 2003 and 2007, while Cruz Azul have yet to make it back.
On 27 June 1977, Raúl González was born in Madrid. He went on to become Real Madrid's all-time leader in goals and appearances.
The striker joined the club's youth squad in 1992 after spells at San Cristobal (1987-90) and Atlético Madrid (1990-92) and made his professional debut with the first team on 29 October 1994. Only 17 years and 124 days old at the time, he set his first club record as the youngest player to appear for the club (though it was broken later that season). He made a total of 30 appearances that season, scoring 10 goals.
It was a sign of things to come; over the next fifteen seasons, Raúl made a total of 741 appearances and scored 323 goals, both club records at the time, though he is now second in goals after Cristiano Ronaldo, who has 406. Along the way, he won six league titles, three Champions League trophies, and two Intercontinental Cups. He also twice won the Pichichi as La Liga's top scorer.
(He was also once Spain's top scorer, with 44 goals in 106 caps between 1996 and 2006, but David Villa has since overtaken him.)
In 2010, with age and injury combining to diminish his role in Madrid, Raúl left for Schalke, where he spent two successful seasons, including winning the German Cup in 2011. He last played for the New York Cosmos in 2014-15.
On 26 June 2011, River Plate were relegated to the Argentine second division for the first time in its 110-year history after drawing 1-1 with Belgrano.
Since winning the 2008 Clausura—their 34th national title—River Plate had fallen on hard times, including a last-place finish in the 2008 Apertura and a series of subsequent mid-table finishes. After a ninth-place finish in the 2011 Clausura, their three-year points-per-game average dropped to 1.237, which placed them 17th in the Primera División relegation table and sent them into a two-legged playoff against Primera B's fourth-place team, Belgrano.
River Plate lost the first leg away, 2-0, then hosted the second leg at the Monumental in Buenos Aires, where Mariano Pavone scored in the sixth minute to close the aggregate gap to 2-1. But they could not find another and instead conceded a goal to Belgrano's Guillermo Farre (62') to finish the series 3-1.
Before the match ended, the home supporters rioted, throwing objects at the players from the stands, then ripping seats out of the concrete. The situation was even worse outside the stadium, where police used tear gas and attack dogs in an attempt to quell the mob.
Despite the drama, River Plate returned to the Primera Division at their first opportunity and won the 2014 Torneo Final.
On 2 July 2008, Quito won the Copa Libertadores on penalties over Fluminense, 5-5 (3-1).
