For European player, the Euros rank second only to the World Cup in terms of prestige – but some of the game’s biggest stars never got the chance to play at the tournament.
Some were so cursed by bad luck that they didn’t feature at the World Cup either, while others simply came along at the wrong time.
Ahead of Euro 2024 – which will be lacking major names like Norway duo Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard, and Sweden pair Alexander Isak and Dejan Kulusevski – FourFourTwo counts down the best players never to play at the Euros.
12. Matt Le Tissier (England)
Matt Le Tissier was one of the most talented English players of the Premier League era, regularly producing moments of magic for Southampton – but he only ever won eight caps for England.
Overlooked for the Three Lions squad for Euro 96 and the 1998 World Cup, Le Tiss never got to experience a major tournament.
11. Georgi Kinkladze (Georgia)
Had Georgi Kinkladze been born a couple of years earlier, he might well have featured at Euro 92 for the CIS – the transitional team of the Soviet Union, following the country’s dissolution the previous year.
As it was, the Manchester City favourite didn’t make his international debut until 1992, by which time has native Georgia were competition as an independent nation. They didn’t qualify for a major tournament until Euro 2024.
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10. Jari Litmanen (Finland)
Finland’s best player of all time, Jari Litmanen enjoyed great success with Ajax and Liverpool, winning the Champions League with the former and the UEFA Cup with the latter.
The attacking midfielder racked up 137 caps for his country, serving as captain between 1996 and 2008, but the Fins never reached a major tournament during his 21-year international career.
9. Johnny Giles (Republic of Ireland)
Widely considered to be the finest Irish player in history, legendary Leeds midfielder Johnny Giles represented the Boys in Green 59 times between 1959 and 1979.
Unfortunately for him, the Republic of Ireland were still a way off being any kind of football force. Indeed, they didn’t make their major tournament debut until Euro 88.
8. David Ginola (France)
An all-time Premier League great, David Ginola did the double of PFA Players’ Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year in 1998/99, off the back of a superb campaign for Tottenham.
By then, though, the swashbuckling winger was well out of the international picture, having been outcast by then manager Gerard Houllier for his overhit cross which ultimately cost France a place at the 1994 World Cup and only earned a handful more caps.
7. Zbigniew Boniek (Poland)
Poland‘s biggest footballing star of the 20th century, legendary midfielder Zbigniew Boniek represented his nation at the 1974, 1978 and 1982 World Cups, helping them to third place in the first and last of those.
However, the Poles never qualified for the Euros during the decorated career of the European Cup-winning Juventus man – failing to make the tournament until 2008, in fact.
6. Kenny Dalglish (Scotland)
Another 70s and 80s great who could have done with the Euros being a bit bigger back then (the tournament still only had eight teams as late as 1992, for goodness sake), Kenny Dalglish played at the World Cup but never the European Championship.
In fact, Scotland‘s first appearance was at Euro 92 – two years after their greatest ever player had hung up his boots.
5. Paolo Rossi (Italy)
Paolo Rossi’s performance en route to victory with Italy at the 1982 World Cup was one of the finest ever seen on the international stage (he took home the Golden Boot and Golden Ball, and won the Ballon d’Or), but the iconic striker missed out on the Euros entirely.
The Azzurri failed to qualify in 1984 – but Rossi would have been involved four years earlier had he not been banned for match-fixing (oops!).
4. John Charles (Wales)
Arguably Wales’ greatest player of all time, John Charles starred in his country’s debut World Cup campaign of 1958.
And the man who scored prolifically for Leeds and Juventus was still playing international football at the time of the first two European Championships in 1960 and 1964 – but the Welsh didn’t enter the first time around, then failed to qualify.
3. Eusebio (Portugal)
Ballon d’Or winner in 1965, Eusebio very nearly led Portugal to the final of the 1966 World Cup – which proved to be the only major tournament of his career.
The 2016 European champions didn’t make their bow at the finals until 1984, by which time the devastating frontman dubbed ‘The Black Panther’ was 42 years old and, unsurprisingly, retired.
2. George Best (Northern Ireland)
Considered by many to be the best British footballer of all time, George Best would have torn it up at any major tournament he’d had the chance to feature at – but it wasn’t to be.
Northern Ireland never reached the World Cup or Euros during the Manchester United icon’s playing days, with his finest international hour coming in the form of 1964 British Home Championship victory.
1. Alfredo Di Stefano (Spain)
Born in Argentina, Alfredo Di Stefano spent the best years of his career with Real Madrid – and the ‘Blond Arrow’ won most of his international caps for Spain, scoring 23 goals in 31 games between 1957 and 1961.
Still going strong at the time of the inaugural Euros in 1960, he would almost certainly have been involved – but La Roja withdrew, delivering yet another slice of bad luck to Di Stefano, who somehow never played at the World Cup either.
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