A header by Bostjan Cesar eight minutes from time gave Slovenia a famous 1-0 win over Italy in their World Cup Group Five qualifier last night.
It was Italy's first World Cup qualifying defeat since May 1993 when they lost in Swizterland - a campaign which saw them qualify safely and go on to reach the final.
Slovenia now lead Group Five with seven points from three matches, one ahead of Italy who had won their first two games.
Italy looked the better side in the first half though almost fell behind when Fabio Cannavaro headed against his own crossbar while defending a corner kick.
In a scrappy second half Italian substitute striker Luca Toni hit the bar from close range just seconds after coming on for Mauro Esposito but it was Cesar who proved the hero.
Tiny Liechtenstein recovered from two goals down at half-time to salvage a shock 2-2 draw with Euro 2004 finalists Portugal but Sweden, Russia, Norway and the Czech Republic avoided similar shocks on a day of 23 Euro qualifying matches.
The fightback in Vaduz earned Liechtenstein their first point from a World Cup qualifying match after 20 defeats in eight years during which they had scored just four goals and conceded 84.
Romania's flying start in Group One was brought to a halt in Prague where Jan Koller's first-half penalty secured the Czech Republic their first win.
In Skopje, Macedonia twice came from behind to hold the Netherlands to a surprise 2-2 draw in another Group One match.
Macedonia secured a famous and deserved point 20 minutes from time when Goran Pandev set up Ace Stojkov, who fooled keeper Edwin van der Sar to score at the near post.
Sweden bounced back from their 1-0 home defeat by Croatia last time out with a resounding 3-0 home win over Hungary in what is already looking a very tight Group Eight.
Goals by Fredrik Ljungberg, Henrik Larsson and Anders Svensson were a just reward for Sweden's total dominance of the game.
Bulgarian fightback
From the same group, Bulgaria scored twice in the last 12 minutes to salvage a 2-2 draw with Croatia as they recovered from Darijo Srna's double in Zagreb.
Bulgaria, who host Malta on Wednesday, persevered in attack and it paid off in the 78th minute when a defence-splitting pass gave Martin Petrov the chance to burst into the area and beat keeper Tomislav Butina.
Petrov set up the equaliser four minutes from time with a perfect cross that found the dangerous Dimitar Berbatov unmarked in the area and he scored with ease.
Norway also got their campaign back on track and left Scotland's in disarray as a second-half penalty by Steffen Iversen secured a 1-0 win at Hampden Park.
Norway had lost to Italy and drawn at home to Belarus in their first two games and desperately needed the three points that were secured by Iversen's 54th-minute spot kick after James McFadden earned a red card for handling Claus Lundekvam's goalbound header on the line.
It was Norway's first win over the Scots in 10 attempts since 1963.
Elsewhere in Group One, Russia took a while to get moving in Luxembourg but, helped by a Dmitri Sychev hat-trick, scored four times in 31 minutes to secure a 4-0 win.
In Paris, Ireland held struggling France to an embarrassing goalless draw in a lacklustre match. It was the third consecutive draw the French conceded on their home ground.
A brave Irish team deserved a better outcome in the Group Four game they dominated from the start but were denied victory thanks to an outstanding performance from goalkeeper Fabien Barthez.
In Kiev, a late goal by substitute Vassilis Tsartas helped European champions Greece snatch a 1-1 draw against Ukraine.
Tsartas blasted a curving shot from a 25-metre free kick into the top corner nine minutes from time to cancel an earlier strike by Ukraine captain Andriy Shevchenko in a tense European Group Two match played in a constant drizzle.
After yesterday's action many of the teams will turn their attention to Wednesday when a further 21 games take place across the continent.