Sharing the field with the publisher's perennially popular FIFA games, EA Sports' UEFA Euro 2004: Portugal is designed to deliver the pride and competition of the title tournament to futbol fans in North America. The 2004 Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) finals matches, held in a selection of Portuguese cities through June and early July, are the focus of this game, which features the 51 national teams involved.
Gamers can play a friendly with any of the included squads, or enter the "Euro 2004" mode and try to take their teams to the top of the ladder. To earn the championship, however, even FIFA veterans may need to master this release's new moves, such as through passes, chip shots and fake shots, bicycle kicks, and diving headers.
Other modes in UEFA Euro 2004 include "Home and Away," which supports the two-leg format; "Situation" and "Tournament," which allow users to create custom challenges; and "Fantasy," which lets fans draft a dream team from a pool of all players available in the game. Multiplayer options support up to four gamers.