The 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Final was a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

match that took place on 25 June 2011 at the Aarhus Stadion in

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

, to determine the winner of the

2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12 * one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''El ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

defeated

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

with 2–0, after goals from Ander Herrera and Thiago.

Route to the final

Pre-match

Venue

After a decision made by

UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...

in October 2009, the Aarhus Stadion in Aarhus, Denmark, the largest stadium of the four 2011 European Under-21 Championship venues, was selected as the official venue for the final.

Officials

Paolo Tagliavento Paolo Tagliavento (; born 19 September 1972) is a former Italian association football referee officiated in the Serie A and UEFA competitions; namely the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. Career Club Tagliavento began refereeing in th ...

of the

Italian Football Federation The Italian Football Federation ( it, Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio; FIGC), known colloquially as ''Federcalcio'', is the governing body of football in Italy. It is based in Rome and the technical department is in Coverciano, Florence. It ...

(FIGC) was named by

as the official referee of the final. Having worked as a

fourth official In association football, an assistant referee (previously known as a linesman or lineswoman) is an official empowered with assisting the referee in enforcing the Laws of the Game during a match. Although assistants are not required under the La ...

in November 2004, he was included in the international referees' list in 2007. The same year, in May, Tagliavento officiated his first match, the 2007 European Under-19 Championship Group 1 elite qualifier match between

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

. He was also a referee at the

2007 UEFA Regions' Cup The 2007 UEFA Regions' Cup was the fifth UEFA Regions' Cup. It was held in Bulgaria and won by the ''Lower Silesia'' team from Poland, which beat the host nation's '' South-East Region'' 2–1, after extra time, in the final. Preliminary roun ...

, where he was in charge of three matches, including the final between South-East Region and Lower Silesia. In July 2007, Tagliavento took charge of his first Champions League match, the 2007–08 Champions League first qualifying round match between Linfield and

Elfsborg Idrottsföreningen Elfsborg, more commonly known as IF Elfsborg or simply Elfsborg (), is a professional football club based in Borås, Sweden, and is affiliated to the Västergötlands Fotbollförbund. They play in the Allsvenskan and have spe ...

. He was given his first professional Champions League match in December 2010, the 2010–11 Champions League Group H match between

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

and

Partizan Partizan may refer to: Sport * JSD Partizan, a sports society from Belgrade, Serbia, which includes the following clubs: **AK Partizan, athletics ** Biciklistički Klub Partizan, cycling ** Džudo Klub Partizan, judo **FK Partizan, association fo ...

. Ahead of the final, Tagliavento had officiated two 2011 European Under-21 Championship matches, one from Group A between

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

and the other from Group B, between

and

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, as well as a total of 17

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

and Europa League matches, including a role as an assistant referee in the 2010 Europa League Final between

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...

and

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

. Tagliavento was joined by assistant referees Damien MacGraith from the Football Association of Ireland and Vytautas Šimkus from the Lithuanian Football Federation, with fourth official Robert Schörgenhofer representing the Austrian Football Association. MacGrath had earlier been given the role as an assistant referee in two Group A matches,

and

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

, and

and hosts

and one Group B match, between

and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, and also the second semi-final match between

and

, while Šimkus was tasked with two Group A matches,

and

and one Group B match, between

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, as well as the first semi-final match between

and

. Prior to the final, Schörgenhofer was also the fourth official of the Group B match between

and

, as well as handling the second Group A match between

and

, the third Group B match between

and

, and the semi-final match between Switzerland and Czech Republic.

Match ball

Adidas Speedcell was the official match ball selected for the final. The ball was used throughout the tournament, and features a futuristic red and white coloured design, in honour of the Denmark flag. It features eleven lines, which denotes the eleven players on the pitch, with the official competition emblem located between the ball.

Opening ceremony

The opening ceremony consisted of volunteers were seen holding balloons, and then releasing them throughout the sky over the stadium, A field march was also performed, as they were seen holding flags, which pictured every participating team in the tournament.

Match

Details

References

External links

2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship history
at Union of European Football Associations {{UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship UEFA European Under-21 Championship finals Switzerland national under-21 football team Spain national under-21 football team Sport in Aarhus Spain–Switzerland relations June 2011 sports events in Europe