Thomas Hitzlsperger’s BBC Sport column: ‘Euro 2024 hasn’t been perfect – but it’s a success for all the right reasons’

Sunday’s final is the 51st game since the tournament began 31 days ago with Germany playing Scotland on 14 June.

Not every game was outstanding and, being totally honest, there were some that were probably quite dull, but that is what major finals are usually like and there were still enough entertaining matches at every stage.

One of the things that became a theme of these Euros was how the smaller teams surprised us with some of their performances, while playing more attractive football than some of the bigger nations.

For me, though, right from the start, it was the fans that stood out. I will never forget the tens of thousands of Scotland supporters in Munich and how they carried on partying even after their team had lost heavily, and not a lot changed wherever I went.

I travelled thousands of miles to cover games in almost every city and I never saw a hint of trouble. Thankfully, any incidents like that anywhere have been very few and far between. From that perspective, of the safety and security of supporters, it has been peaceful, which is brilliant.

Instead I have just seen and heard things that have put a smile on my face – for example the mass fan walks to the stadium that the Dutch do before every game – or have left me deafened for days afterwards, like the Romania fans who turned up the volume when I was sitting with them during their draw with Slovakia.