Final Is Big Fat Greek Upset

Greece won the European Championship in one of the biggest upsets in soccer history, beating host Portugal, 1-0, Sunday on Angelos Charisteas’ goal early in the second half.

Charisteas scored in the 57th minute with a header off a corner kick from Angelos Basinas.

Giourkas Seitaridis went on a speedy run down the right side and was stopped by a block by Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, with the ball rolling over the end line. Basinas floated the corner kick into the six-yard box, and Charisteas timed his run perfectly to outjump Jorge Andrade and beat goalkeeper Ricardo Pereira from five yards.

“All Greeks should celebrate this victory. We are the best team in Europe,” Charisteas said. “It’s the greatest moment of my career. When I scored, I thought we could not lose.”

The unheralded Greeks, a 100-1 shot given little chance of advancing from a first-round group that included Spain, Portugal and Russia, had been to only two major tournaments, the 1994 World Cup and the 1980 European Championship, failing to win a game.

The victory Sunday came slightly more than a month before Athens plays host to the Olympics.

In Athens, thousands of people waving Greek flags and honking car horns poured into the streets and fireworks formed a bright drape over the Acropolis and other monuments.

Thousands of people, some crying and embracing, gathered in Omonia Square, many waving Greek flags and singing the national anthem. Some cried and embraced. Others spread out the national flag on the street and bowed in front of it.

“I have to say that I am very proud because these players gave a great victory to Greece,” Prime Minister Costas Caramanlis said.

In Cyprus, thousands of Greek Cypriots packed the squares of all the main towns and villages, setting off fireworks and waving Greek flags.

When referee Markus Merk blew the final whistle, about 15,000 Greek fans in the Stadium of Light cheered.

“I hope this reverberates in Greece. I hope when we get into Athens [today] there will be incredible scenes,” said Otto Rehhagel, a German who helped Greece become the first team to win the quadrennial European title with a foreign coach.

Eusebio, the greatest player in Portugal’s history, stood on the podium as 50,000 Portuguese watched in disappointment as their heroes received the second-place medals. Portugal was in a major final for the first time.

“We couldn’t take advantage of our chances,” Portugal Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. “There were shots that could have gone in, which would have changed the result. Unfortunately, they didn’t go in.”

Greece upset Portugal, 2-1, in the tournament opener June 12 and beat defending champion France, 1-0, in the quarterfinals on a goal by Charisteas.

They beat the Czech Republic, 1-0, in the semifinals on an overtime header by Traianos Dellas, nearly identical to Charisteas’ goal Sunday.

The Greeks did not give up a goal in their last 343 minutes of the tournament.