1971 European Championship

The 1971 European Championship was held from September 5 through September 12, 1971 in Parma and Bologna, Italy.

 Netherlands lost for the first time ever in a European Championship after having gone 34-0 in the prior 15 years. They still won Gold, going 6-1 and topping Italy in 2 of 3 games in the finals. Their loss came by a 1-0 score in game 2 of the finals; they won game 3 7-3 after an hour rain delay.

 Italy showed off a good challenge to the Netherlands while playing host, going 4-2 to win Silver. This presaged their rise to Gold later in the decade. Giulio Glorioso tossed a 11-strikeout no-hitter against West Germany. Giorgio Castelli hit .593/.593/.889 and drove in 9 runs.

 Germany placed third and won Bronze, going 4-1, with their lone loss coming to Glorioso. Peter Budny (2-0, save) struck out 39 in 28 2/3 innings and had a 0.94 ERA.

 Belgium finished 4th at 3-3.

 San Marino made its European Championship debut, going a surprisingly strong 2-2 with wins over Britain and Spain, a traditionally strong club.

 Spain had a disappointing 6th-place finish at 2-3.

 United Kingdom was 7th at 1-3.

 Sweden placed 8th, going 1-4.

 France pulled up the rear at 0-4.

Source: Baseball in Europe by Josh Chetwynd

Also see 1971 European Championship (Rosters)