The games in the eight preliminary round groups started on April 28, 1986 and ended on December 15, 1987. The quarter-finals took place between March 2 and 23, 1988 and the semi-finals between April 13 and 27, 1998. The finals for the title took place on May 25, 1988 and October 12, 1988, with France prevailing against Greece with a total of 3-0 and winning the European championship for the first time. Defending champion Spain was eliminated in the quarter-finals against the Netherlands , Germany , the GDR , Austria and Switzerland even in the preliminary round.
The 30 national teams were drawn in eight groups - six groups of four and two groups of three teams. The national selections had to play their encounters with two legs. The respective group winners (marked in yellow) were qualified for the quarter-finals, from which the knockout system was played in the first and second leg up to the final.
Germany had Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Luxemburg as opponents in group 8. With only three wins - twice 4: 1 against Luxembourg and a 2: 0 against Bulgaria - and three defeats, the Germans' performance was disappointing and ultimately only reached third place in the group. The 2-0 home defeat against the Netherlands in Münster was particularly painful, because if they had won, it would not have been the Dutch but Germany who would have been group winners.
GDR
With France, Norway and the Soviet Union, the GDR was assigned three tough opponents in Group 3. The team suffered only one defeat (1: 2 in the Soviet Union) and came to two wins (5: 1 in Ludwigsfelde against the Soviet Union and 1: 0 in Halle against France). In the last group game in France, the GDR did not get beyond a 2-2 draw, whereby the future European champions France secured the group victory before the GDR.
Austria
Austria played in group 1 with a change of pace. Right at the beginning there was a 0-1 defeat in Romania. This was followed by a narrow 1-0 win over Albania in Kapfenberg . In the Bundesstadion Südstadt there was an honorable 1-1 draw against Spain. This was followed by a disappointing 1-1 draw in Albania and a smooth 3-0 defeat in Spain. With a 1-0 win over Bulgaria in Stockerau there was a conciliatory conclusion, but in the end it was only enough for third place in the group.
Switzerland
Switzerland got off to a good start in Group 2. A 0-0 win in Sweden was followed by a 3-1 win against Portugal in Entlebuch . In the home game against Sweden in Vevey , it was only enough for a disappointing 0-0 draw. This was followed by a heavy 3-0 home defeat against Italy in Neuchâtel , which finally put Switzerland out of the running. The final 2-0 defeat in Portugal ultimately only brought Switzerland third place in the group.
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Albania
Italy
GDR
England
Austria
Portugal
France
Turkey
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Romania
Sweden
Norway
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Yugoslavia
Spain
Switzerland
Soviet Union
Greece
Denmark
Belgium
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Bulgaria
Poland
Finland
Ireland
BR Germany
Hungary
Iceland
Scotland
Luxembourg
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Cyprus
Czechoslovakia
Netherlands
