Your guide to everything you need to know about the European Championships in Germany:
When does it begin?
The Euros kick off on Friday with hosts Germany taking on Scotland at the Munich Football Arena (known as the Allianz Arena during Bayern Munich games).
When is the final?
The final will be held at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin on July 14th.
who do you like the most?
England and France are widely seen as favourites to win. England has not won a major international tournament since the 1966 World Cup and lost in the final at the last Euros. France lost in the 2022 World Cup final and is led by Kylian Mbappe, who has just joined Real Madrid and is widely regarded as the best player in the world, a likely successor to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
What is the format?
The tournament will be played in six groups of four teams each. Each group will play against the other once, with a win earning three points, a draw earning one point, and a loss earning zero points. The top two teams from each group and the four best third-placed teams will advance to the round of 16.
The tournament will be played in a straight knockout format from the round of 16 through the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final, and the winner will be determined.
Euro 2024 bracket
Group A: Germany, Scotland, Hungary, Switzerland
Group B: Spain, Croatia, Italy, Albania
Group C: Slovenia, Denmark, Serbia, England
Group D: Poland, Netherlands, Austria, France
Group E: Belgium, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine
Group F: Türkiye, Georgia, Portugal, Czech Republic
Stadium and capacity
Berlin Olympic Stadium (71,000 people)
Cologne Stadium (43,000)
BVB Stadion Dortmund (62,000)
Düsseldorf Arena (47,000)
Frankfurt Arena (47,000)
Arena Aufschalke, Gelsenkirchen (50,000)
Volksparkstadion, Hamburg (49,000)
Leipzig Stadium (40,000)
Munich Football Arena (66,000)
Stuttgart Arena (51,000)
Who are the defending champions?
Italy won the last Euros, which were held in 2021 after the original tournament was postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Italy beat England on penalties in the final at Wembley Stadium.
Past winners
Germany and Spain have won the Euros three times.
The only other countries to have won the tournament multiple times are Italy and France, who have each won twice.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s record
The Portuguese great is playing in a record sixth European Championship.
Coming into the tournament, he already holds the record for most appearances at the Euros (25) and most goals (14).
The 39-year-old Ronaldo won the tournament with Portugal in 2016.
Ronaldo, who plays for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, was an iconic player for Manchester United and Real Madrid, winning the Champions League five times and the Ballon d’Or, awarded to the world’s best player, five times.
Why isn’t Erling Haaland playing?
Despite being one of the most prolific goalscorers in world football, Manchester City striker Haaland was unable to lead Norway to the Euros, where they also missed out on qualification for the 2022 World Cup.
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James Robson is https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
