The Denmark national football team were amateur until 1971, with the DBU (Dansk Boldspil-Union) happy to just arrange friendly matches between 1920 and 1948. Before that, the Danes were extremely successful at Olympic football tournaments, with a gold medal in 1906 and silver in 1908 and 1912. Being amateur severely restricted the national team, as most Danes moved abroad and the league suffered.
De Rød-Hvide’s record win was a mammoth 17-1 win over France in the 1908 London Olympics, whilst they lost 8-0 to Germany in 1937. It took until 1986 before Denmark national football team finally qualified for a World Cup as the “Danish Dynamite” became known for their attacking football and gifted individuals, such as Michael Laudrup and Preben Elkjaer. However, their crowning moment happened in 1992.
Yugoslavia had pipped Denmark into qualifying for the European Championships in Sweden and the dejected Danes were on the beach, trying to enjoy their summer. Suddenly, war broke out in Yugoslavia and UEFA excluded them from the tournament, replacing them with Denmark. With nothing to lose, Richard Møller Nielsen’s men managed to go all the way, beating world champions Germany 2-0 in the final.