Right before the Euro 2016 final, Portugal coach Fernando Santos had remarked: “We know we are not the best team in the world but we are not pushovers either.” 
He pretty well summed up the biggest ever Euro tournament which started a month ago with a record 24 teams - and ended with “not the best team in the world”.
With very few exceptions, the 51 matches lacked true class. Only the few upsets, some late goals and some occasional flashes of individual brilliance got the fans roaring. 
France’s Antoine Griezmann stood out as tournament top scorer with six goals, Portugal’s superstar Cristiano Ronaldo had an up-and-down tournament but scored when it mattered before having his dream final cut cruelly short by injury. 
His Real Madrid team-mate Gareth Bale played a leading role in getting Wales into the semis in their debut performance. Wales and tiny quarter-finalists Iceland were the surprise packages who like many others preached that the collective is more important than the individual. 
Iceland caused the upset of tournament, knocking out a red-faced England 2-1 - with a TV audience of 99.8 per cent watching in Iceland and UEFA saying that only 298 Icelanders, from an overall population of 330,000 of which some 10,000 came to France, were watching a different programme. 
Roy Hodgson meanwhile stepped down as manager shortly after the final whistle as England’s hopes once again vanished early. 
England made headlines over the unruly behaviour of their fans in the streets of Marseille in the run-up to the first game with Russia. But there was also a group of some 150 well-trained Russians who came to the city only for trouble, and an attack on England fans in the stadium earned Russia a suspended disqualification from the tournament. That raised concerns about the safety for foreign visitors at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. 
Portugal were initially unconvincing as well, drawing all three group games to scrape through as one of the third-placed teams, then needing extra-time to oust fancied Croatia (whose fans fought among themselves earlier in another event of fan violence) and penalties to stop Poland. But they had the last laugh as they held out against hosts France and lifted the trophy after Eder struck the only goal in extra-time. 
The often dour matches raised questions about the 24-team format, but given UEFA’s record revenue of 1.93 billion euros (up 34 per cent from 2012) there will be no way back, with UEFA vice-president Angel Maria Villar Llona naming the new teams “a breath of fresh air.” 
The tournament largely saved face through France’s run into the final which lifted the home nation some eight months after the terror attacks in Paris, with Griezmann insisting “It’s our duty to win matches for the French public.” 
Tragically, they couldn’t win the trophy, much like Portugal when they hosted the event in 2004 and lost to Greece in the final. But all that has been forgotten this time as the team shrugged off an injury to their talisman Ronaldo and won their biggest trophy in the country’s sporting history.