Following a 4–1 win over Russia in their first game, Spain qualified for the quarter-finals with a 2–1 victory against Sweden in their second. They clinched the top spot after Russia beat Greece later that day, condemning the title holders to last place in the group. The second quarter-final berth was to be decided by the Sweden–Russia match, with Sweden only needing to avoid defeat to go through. However, Russia scored a goal in each half to beat Sweden 2–0 and qualify for the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, despite going behind towards the end of the first half, Spain scored two second half goals, one coming three minutes before full time, to become the third team in the tournament to qualify for the quarter-finals with a 100% group stage record.
Greece who was the defending champion of UEFA Euro 2004, lost all 3 of its games and stayed in last place without scoring any points, also became the worst defending champion in the history of UEFA Euro.