2026 Under-19 EURO final highlights & report: Spain overcome Germany to seal tenth title

Spain won the 2026 UEFA European Under-19 Championship with a controlled showing against Germany at The Racecourse Ground in Wrexham.

Match in brief: Spain show strength after Germany's sharp start

A mark of their impressive performances in the semi-finals, both Spain and Germany named unchanged 11s for the final in Wrexham.

Spain took control of possession from the first whistle, something we've come to expect at these finals, but Germany initially had answers through their compact defensive set-up and produced the two standout chances of the opening half hour through Otto Stange.

With slightly less than ten minutes played, Stange drew the first save of the match from Manu González after skipping away from Mario Rivas inside the box. Germany's No9 repeated that trick 20 minutes later, this time rolling away from Andres Cuenca before releasing a low shot saved by the legs of the Spanish goalkeeper.

Otto Stange and Andres Cuenca compete for the ballUEFA via Getty Images

With half-time fast approaching, Spain produced two looks for their No9 Hugo López and took the lead when the Villarreal forward converted the second, which came minutes after his audacious chip had struck the crossbar.

Staying alert after Daniel Yañez's blocked shot bounced back out off the post, Hugo prodded in a simple finish for a 1-0 half-time lead.

Hugo López celebrates after putting Spain aheadGetty Images

Spain quickly doubled their advantage in the second half thanks to a pair of unlikely protagonists: centre-backs Cuenca and Mario Rivas. First up was Cuenca, winning a corner as Florian Hellstern parried his distance strike, next his defensive partner leaping to head in the resulting Yañez corner at the near post.

Germany were close to pulling one back when Moritz Reimers drilled a shot towards the near corner in the 57th minute but Manu González somehow kept the ball out.

Montrell Culbreath headed wide Rafael Pinto Pedrosa's cross and Jykese Fields nodded straight at the goalkeeper from rare Germany chances during the closing stages, but Spain's defence ultimately remained unbreached on the day – and across the whole tournament.

Reaction 

Paco Gallardo, Spain coach, speaking to UEFA: "The feeling is better than last year [when Spain finished as runners-up]. I am very happy and I think this team is the best team in the history of this championship. This team suffered a lot and now it's the best team in this tournament. It's amazing. Thirty goals scored and zero conceded [across qualifying and the finals]. Unbelievable."

Quim Junyent, Spain captain, speaking to UEFA: "The truth is, this is the moment the whole team has been dreaming of since the start of the year, and now it’s time to enjoy it. But there’s been a lot of hard work, most of all. At the end of the day, if you work hard and try hard, you get rewarded."

Mario Rivas, Spain defender, speaking to UEFA: "It’s an incredible feeling. This team has been working hard for a long time, and today we showed what we are like as a team. We’re a family, and I’m really happy for all of us."

Hugo López, Spain striker, on his goal: "It’s a classic striker’s goal, it was about believing, going after every ball, every second chance. It’s the least I can do for the team, give my best and go all out, as if every play was the last."

Christian Wörns, Germany coach, speaking to UEFA: "I am very proud of the team and our development – of what we delivered here overall. We put up a massive fight today. I mean, the Spaniards dominated other teams much more, and I don't think they've allowed any other team to create as many chances against them as we did today."

Luca Erlein, Germany defender, speaking to UEFA: "I think Spain have very good quality and they played a very good tournament. Today was not our best performance and they were very good in front of goal."

Key stats

• Spain celebrate a record-extending tenth Under-19 EURO title. They most recently won in 2024 and were runners-up in 2025.
• La Roja are the first team to win the Under-19 EURO without conceding a goal.
• This was the second time that Spain have defeated Germany in the final of this competition, also winning the inaugural final in 2002. The match winner on that occasion was one Fernando Torres.