The European Cups usually show teams that can compete for the continental titles, but in some cases that display of good football and success has not been capitalized to go to the World Cup Football .
Italy , current monarch of Europe, is in a very compromising situation after losing an opportunity to qualify directly for the World Cup in Qatar 2022. Now, they will have to go to the playoffs that has been a real nightmare since the last World Cup cycle, where they were left without qualifying after losing the pass against Sweden.
Although Italy still has possibilities, it could come across a team from Portugal who experienced something similar after winning the Euro 2016 from France and was able to assist Russia by way of the repechage. However, in European football there were three cases where the European champions failed to attend the next World Cup.
Czechoslovakia: Euro Champion 1536 and did not attend Argentina 78
One of the most remembered selections in the years 70 was that of Czechoslovakia , which amazed many to win the European Championship in Yugoslavia 1976 , against the selection of West Germany .
In that final, Antonín Panenka was the great hero by giving him the victory with the last penalty charged with a Vaseline on him German goalkeeper, who finished patenting it as the “Panenka penalty”, but football ended up giving a lesson that everything could change overnight, by staying out of the World Cup in Argentina 1978 .
Anchored in Group 7, along with the teams of Scotland and Wales , Czechoslovakia was in second place after losing to the Welsh, who were last and against the Scots who could lose only once.
Denmark: To surprise everyone in 1992 to be eliminated by Spain for the USA 94
The Swedish Eurocup 1992 had one of the most unforgettable stories of all with the triumph of Denmark over Netherlands, defending champions of 1978 and from Germany who had just won the World Cup in Italy 1990, in addition, his team had the peculiarity that it was not prepared to play the continental tournament.
Due to the outbreak of the Balkan War , Yugoslavia had been sanctioned and expelled from all competition, because of this, the Danes were invited and the coach Richard M. Nielsen had to call the players who were on vacation and join a team that ended up raising the cup.
However, for the World Cup Qualifiers United States 1994 , Denmark had a complicated group where they had to fight until the last moment against Spain and Ireland
The Danes stayed out of the World Cup after losing in the last match of the qualifiers in Seville against Spain and with the equality between Northern Ireland and Ireland, they left the Scandinavians with no option to play in USA
Greece: The surprise of 2004 and the disappointment for Germany 2006
The selection of Greece commanded by the German Otto Rehhagel gave the last surprise in a Eurocup by defeating the host Portugal in the debut match and in the final, remaining as the champions of the contest.
With figures like Theodoro Zagorakis, Angelos Charisteas and Antonios Nikopolidis , the Greeks made their modern epic in football and ended up eliminating national teams from importance as France and a Czech Republic , candidate for the title.
Opposite thing in the Qualifiers to Germany 2004, where they were located in the fourth Group 2 table position, below class sified Ukraine, Turkey and Denmark.
Although Czechoslovakia, Denmark and Greece agree that their first European Championship was accompanied by a World Cup qualifying failure, Italy will have to wait until March in 2021, to find out if he will be able to go to the Qatar World Cup.