#3 UEFA Euro 1996
Also known as the Trafalgar Square Riots, the incident occurred on 26th June 1996 after England lost to Germany on penalties in the semi-finals of Euro 1996 at the Wembley.
Almost 2000 hooligans, most of them drunk, took over Trafalgar Square in London. They pelted civilians and police with bottles, smashed windows of shops and overturned cars. More than sixty people were injured in the incident, and over 200 arrests were made on the day.
Several riots also took place in other parts of the country, including Swindon and Bedford, where looting occurred. In the West Midlands, hooligans threw bricks at a German supermarket, while in Brighton, a Russian student was stabbed five times by a hooligan, assuming he was German.
It was a largely peaceful and orderly tournament until that point. But the riots were a familiar flashback to the large-scale footballing violence in the country during the 1980s and added another shameful chapter in the history of English football.
#2 UEFA Euro 2000
After losing to Portugal in their tournament opener at Euro 2020, England faced Germany in a must-win game to keep their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stage alive. But even before the match began, the English hooligans brought shame to their nation by sparking violent scenes in Brussels and Charleroi.
Travelling English supporters clashed with German fans, forcing police to use tear gas and bring in plain-clothed officers to wrestle them to the ground and make arrests. More than 900 fans were arrested by the police, and around 400 of them were eventually deported. The incident occurred just weeks after trouble in the UEFA Cup final between Arsenal and Galatasaray in Copenhagen, confirming pre-tournament fears about English hooliganism.
England did win the match 1-0, thanks to an Alan Shearer header, but that joy was short-lived when UEFA president Lennart Johansson threatened to kick England out of the tournament following the ugly riots caused by the travelling supporters. Johansson said:
Fans cannot be allowed to behave like this again and create havoc. The UK government owes it to everyone concerned to take similar steps to those taken in other countries to stop those troublesome fans from travelling abroad. UEFA will have to determine whether the presence of the English team in the tournament should be maintained should there be a repetition of similar incidents. We cannot afford a repeat of the fans' recent behaviour.
That didn't happen, but England were dumped out anyway, as they lost their final group game against Romania, capping a major embarrassment for English football.
#1 UEFA European Cup 1985
The Heysel Stadium disaster occurred on May 29, 1985, in Brussels, Belgium, before a match between Liverpool and Juventus in the final of the European Cup. To this date, that day is remembered as one of the darkest days in modern football.
An hour before kickoff, a few Liverpool fans broke into the neutral's section, which was largely occupied by local Juventus fans living in the area. Missiles were thrown between supporters standing on terraces, separated only by a chain link and a poorly-policed line.
The barrage between supporters grew more intense until finally, the Reds supporters broke the barrier, causing the Italians to retreat. A perimeter wall blocked the exit of the Juventus fans, which eventually collapsed due to the sheer number of people and the general poor state of the stadium.
The incident resulted in 39 deaths, including 32 Italians, four Belgians, two Frenchmen and one Northern Irishman, while around 600 people were injured in the event.
Remarkably, the game was still played after an hour's delay, as officials feared there could have been more violence if the fixture was abandoned.
Following the disaster, UEFA banned all English clubs from European tournaments before allowing them back after the 1990 FIFA World Cup. The British government also introduced strict new laws to control and stop fans' unruly behaviour.
The Public Order Act of 1986 permitted courts to ban supporters from the ground, while the Football Spectators Act of 1989 introduced stricter rules about booze consumption and racial abuse.