Greece's first appearance in a major tournament came in 1980 in the European Championship only getting one point in four matches. It took Greece another twenty four years before they could post their first win in a major competition they beat hosts Portugal 2 - 1.

Greece produced the biggest shock in the history of the European Championships in 2004 when they won the title beating hosts Portugal 1 - 0 in the final. Odds of 150-1 were given to Greece before the tournament and they had to beat France, Czech Republic and Portugal to win.