Numbers game: 10 statistics that tell the story of Euro 2024’s group stage

Romelu Lukaku has been a symbol of Belgium fans’ frustration, but he was actually the group stage’s most dangerous striker. Photograph: Catherine Steenkeste/Getty Images

No goals from direct free-kicks

None of the 81 goals scored in the group stage were scored directly from a direct free kick. At Euro 2020, there was just one free-kick goal, scored by Mikkel Damsgaard against England in the semi-finals. Euro 2016 had four, with Gareth Bale scoring two of them – more (so far) than in the next two tournaments combined. This is in line with domestic trends: in Europe’s top five leagues, the amount of free-kicks in the final third that are shot at goal has dropped from 24.6% in 2008-09 to 18.8% in 2022-23.

One pass from Phil Foden to Harry Kane

A particularly damning England statistic from Opta: Phil Foden passed more often to his goalkeeper Jordan Pickford (three times) than attacking cohort Harry Kane (once). Are the broader numbers just as bad? Mostly. England’s expected goals (xG) of 2.26 was better than only Serbia’s and Scotland’s, and their matches against Serbia and Slovenia offered lower xG totals than any Premier League game last season. England have had 28 attempts on goal, 20th out of 24 teams. There are some positives, though: Gareth Southgate’s side are third in passing accuracy (90%) and their crossing accuracy (40.6%) is, believe it or not, the Euros’ best.

Seven goals in cagey Group C

Another area where England lead the way is in xGA: expected goals conceded. Their total of 1.1 from three games is the lowest at Euro 2024 (and still slightly higher than the 1.0 they actually let in). But is that down to England’s tight defence, or weak attacking opposition? Group C featured only seven goals across six games (every other group had at least 11), a historical low only matched by Group C in 2016. The two final games offered an unmatched, unwanted record as both finished goalless for the first time at a Euros.

Seven shots on target from Lukaku

It’s not just England dealing with poor form and unhappy fans. Belgium limped to second place in Group E with four points and two goals. After having three strikes disallowed by VAR, Romelu Lukaku has become a symbol of the team’s attacking frustrations – but he was actually the group stage’s most dangerous striker, with seven attempts on target (one more than Kylian Mbappé, who played a game fewer). Domenico Tedesco’s side also rank in the top six for xG, attacks (174) and possession (55.7%) – numbers that give them reason to believe against another undercooked favourite, France, in the last 16.

18 cards shown in one match

Turkey beat the Czech Republic 2-1 to close out Group F, but it was a Romanian who stole the show. The referee, Istvan Kovacs, dished out 18 cards – 16 yellows and two reds, to Antonin Barak and Tomas Chory. Two other Czechs were booked, along with 10 Turkish players. Kovacs didn’t stop there, also taking the names of four unused substitutes. The dirtiest game in Euros history pushed the total yellow-card count up to 161 (Euro 2020’s grand total was 151). The group-stage closer also tripled the total red-card count – the only other player sent off was Scotland’s Ryan Porteous in the opener against Germany.

23 seconds: the fastest goal in Euros history

Nedim Bajrami shocked Italy and sent Albania’s “red wall” into raptures when he scored after 23 seconds in Dortmund. His team lost 2-1 but Bajrami ensured Albania’s place in history with the fastest-ever Euros goal. This has been the year of very late and very early goals; Youri Tielemans against Romania (1min 13sec) and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia against Portugal (1min 32sec) also rank in the top five all-time quickest Euro goals. There have been 13 goals scored before the 15th minute at Euro 2024, while minutes 16-30 have been the most fertile (17 goals).

54% possession for Spain

Spain were the only team to win all three group games, reaping the benefits of a more direct approach under Luis de la Fuente. The contrast with La Roja’s Euro 2020 vintage is stark: Luis Enrique’s team completed 4,688 passes (781 per game) and 81 dribbles (13.5pg) on their run to the semi-finals. Reshaped around the ball-carrying skills of Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams, Spain have completed 1,470 passes (490pg) and made 66 dribbles (22pg) so far. Most dramatic is their drop in possession – from 60.8% at Euro 2016 and 66.8% at Euro 2020, it stands at 54% in Germany.

134 balls recovered by Georgia

Underdogs Georgia swept into the last 16 by beating Portugal with just 28% possession. Willy Sagnol’s side are defying the numbers, going through despite the worst xGA (7.9) and expected goal difference (-4.1) of all 24 teams. That is largely down to their fast, reactive style of defending: they have recovered the ball 134 times, more even than high-pressing Austria. Georgia also top the charts for tackles made (55) and won (27), and have cleared the ball 100 times. And when all else failed, Giorgi Mamardashvili has been a superb last line of defence with 20 saves.

326 passes completed by Kroos

Germany and Portugal are the teams to beat based on the group-stage attacking data. The two heavyweights lead the way on passing accuracy, possession, goal attempts and passes completed. The hosts have scored eight goals (more than the entirety of Group C) with Toni Kroos their creative heartbeat, completing 326 of 341 passes (95.7% accuracy). The midfielder was among Euro 2020’s most fluent passers despite Germany’s last-16 exit, completing 353 passes (88 per game) but his current figure of 108 per match shows a marked improvement, and suggests he can carry his side much further this time.

900: Schmid scores landmark goal

Romano Schmid’s strike to put Austria 2-1 up against the Netherlands in Group D was the 900th goal scored at a Euro finals. Since the event expanded beyond eight teams in 1996, the scoring rate has grown exponentially; Kim Vilfort’s goal for Denmark in the 1992 final was the 200th in tournament history. The group stage has featured an average of 2.25 goals per game. That is a drop from Euro 2020’s historically high 2.79 goals per game – and above only Euro 96 and 2016 in the past 30 years.