AMSTERDAM (AP) Next year's European Championship in France was enlarged from 16 teams to 24. There still wasn't a place for the dismal Dutch.
The 1988 European champion and three-time World Cup finalist completed a catastrophic qualification series Tuesday with a humiliating 3-2 defeat in Amsterdam to the 10-man Czech Republic.
As if saving their worst for last, the Dutch went 2-0 down in 35 minutes, Robin van Persie scored an own goal and a late rally was not enough to secure a win that ultimately wouldn't have got Danny Blind's team to France anyway. Instead, Turkey beat Iceland 1-0 to secure direct qualification from Group A as the best third-place team.