Context: England is quite a successful nation at the UEFA European Football Championship, having finished in third place in 1968 and reached the semi-final in 1996. England hosted Euro 96 and have appeared in eight UEFA European Championship Finals tournaments, tied for ninth-best. The team has also reached the quarter-final on two recent occasions in 2004 and 2012. The team's worst result in the competition was a first-round elimination in 1980, 1988, 1992 and 2000. The team did not enter in 1960, and they failed to qualify in 1964, 1972, 1976, 1984, and 2008.

Question: Where does England rank in terms of the number of UEFA European Football Championship appearances?

Answer: tied for ninth-best