Fernando Torres scored in the 33d minute, and the Spaniards never backed down against a formidable opponent. Their last significant title came in the 1964 Euros.

In beating a team that makes a habit of appearing in championship finals, the Spaniards put to rest a reputation for underachieving.

The Spaniards swept their first-round games, eliminated World Cup champion Italy in a penalty-kicks shoot-out in the quarterfinals, then routed Russia, 3-0, in the semifinals.

Against the highly accomplished Germans, they weren't intimidated. They got the one goal they needed - from a slumping striker, no less - and set off chants of "Es-paña," and "Ole, Ole Ole Ole" at the final whistle.

When Spain goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas accepted the trophy on a stage, the Spanish fans began chanting the melody to their national anthem, which has no words.

Germany has won three Euros and three World Cups, but was no match in this final. Captain Michael Ballack, listed as questionable before the game with a calf injury, started, but hardly was noticeable - except when he left for several minutes to have a bloody right eye treated.

"We had a great tournament, but made one mistake too many," Ballack said. "We were lacking of power against a great Spanish team. We couldn't keep up with them."

Torres, who had 33 goals for Liverpool this season but had been invisible in the Euros, came through off a brilliant feed from Xavi Hernandez.

Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, at 38 the oldest player in the competition, charged from his net when he saw that defender Philipp Lahm was beaten on the right side. But Torres chipped the ball over the sliding Lehmann and into the gaping goal.

The crowd of 51,428 at Ernst Happel Stadium, split almost equally between Germany and Spain, might have expected the Spaniards to go into a protective shell. Instead, and even without leading scorer David Villa (leg injury), they continued to carry the attack and were far more dangerous than Germany the rest of the way.

This was the last game for 69-year-old Luis Aragones, the oldest coach to win the Euros. Germany's Joachim Loew has a contract through the 2010 World Cup, but will need to find the spark Germany showed only periodically in Austria and Switzerland.

"Spain played very well during the whole tournament. and they were technically excellent," Loew said. "They fully deserve victory."

A crowd of about 68,000 packed Vienna's downtown fan zone to watch the final, police said. In Germany, flags fluttered from balconies and car antennas across the country. In Berlin, an estimated 400,000 fans watched the game on outdoor screens.

Spain has never made a World Cup final and was in one other Euros final, aside from the 1964 triumph. That was a loss to France in 1984.