The European Championships, otherwise known as the Euros, is one of the biggest soccer competitions in the world. After Italy’s victory last time out over England, both sides will look to get amongst it and overcome other top sides such as Spain, Netherlands, and the host Germany in the upcoming 2024 Euros.
As anticipation mounts and soccer enthusiasts around the globe eagerly await the start of the 2024 European Championships, we have put together our very own guide for the competition. This comprehensive guide aims to prepare you with everything you need to know about the tournament. From tournament predictions to star players and host cities, we will cover everything this coveted competition has to offer.
What are the European Championships
The European Champions, or Euros for short, is an international soccer competition consisting of the best men’s national teams from Europe. The competition is organized by UEFA and takes place once every four years. The first Euros was hosted in France in 1960 and won by Russia (Soviet Union at the time), with the most recent being hosted across Europe and won by Italy.
Euro 2024 will feature 24 teams, firstly, they will be split into 6 groups, with 4 teams being in each group. Each team will play each other once within these groups, and the top 2 teams will progress to the knockout round. All teams that finish 3rd will be placed into a table based on their points and goal difference, and the top 4 teams will also progress to the knockout stages. Once at the knockout stages, teams must try to progress through the round of 16 to the quarter-finals, to the semis, and then to the final.
Where Will The Euro 2024 Be Held
As briefly mentioned, the upcoming Euros will be hosted by Germany. Germany is one of the most successful national teams when it comes to the Euros, having won the competition 3 times. The competition will be hosted across Germany in major cities such as Berlin, Munich, Dortmund, Stuttgart and more. The stadiums that will be in use and their capacity are as follows:
– Olympiastadion Berlin – Capacity of 74,461.
– Fußball Arena München – Capacity of 70,076.
– BVB Stadion Dortmund – Capacity of 65,849.
– Stuttgart Arena – Capacity of 54,906.
– Arena Auf Schalke – Capacity of 54,740.
– Frankfurt Arena – Capacity of 54,697.
– Volksparkstadion – Capacity of 52,245.
– Dusseldorf Arena – Capacity of 51,031.
– Cologne Stadium – Capacity of 49,827.
– Leipzig Stadium – Capacity of 42,959.
Euro 2024 Group Stage Predictions
Euro 2024 is a great opportunity for both fans of sports betting and matched betting due to the high volume of matches being played. Here, we will make some predictions ourselves in preparation for the tournament. Group A consists of Germany, Scotland, Hungary and Switzerland. We predict that Germany will qualify with them being the hosts; however, the second spot is very much up for grabs. Scotland was brilliant in the Qualifiers; however, Hungary and Switzerland both have lots of quality on their sides. With that being said we will predict Scotland to go through.
Group B consists of Croatia, Spain, Italy, and Albania. In this group, we believe Spain and Italy will qualify. Croatia are also a very good side; however, they have an aging team at this point. Group C should be quite cut and dry, with England and Denmark qualifying and Serbia and Slovenia missing out.
Group D features the Netherlands, Austria, France and the play-off winner from Group A. This mystery team could be from Poland, Wales, Finland, or Estonia. Regardless, we believe the Netherlands and France will qualify as they are both teams that could go all the way in this competition. Group E features Belgium, Slovakia, Romania and one of Israel, Bosnia, Ukraine, or Iceland. We believe that Belgium and the mystery team will go through. We also further predict that Ukraine will qualify for the Euros and make it through the group.
Finally, in Group F, there is Turkey, Portugal, the Czech Republic, and one of Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, and Luxembourg. We believe that Portugal and Turkey will progress through the next round.
Euro 2024 Finalist Predictions
The 2024 Euros already have a few teams which are considered favorites. These favorites include England, France, and Germany. France made it to the final of the previous World Cup and has a team that is full of quality. Germany, despite not having the strongest team in recent years, is the host and, therefore, will have an edge over the other teams due to the home advantage. Finally, there is England, who were finalists in the last Euros and have one of the strongest squads in the competition.
Outside of these 3, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Portugal and the Netherlands are also outside shouts for the Euro trophy. All of these teams have underperformed slightly in recent years and, therefore, are not considered favorites at the sportsbooks. However, they all possess world-class players who could help them win important matches.
Euro 2024 Player Predictions
Predicting the top goal-scorer for the Euros is a very difficult challenge; however, we can provide you with a few names we believe will be up there. Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe are the 2 players who will most likely be battling for the trophy. They are both quality strikers who constantly top the goalscoring charts in international competitions and their domestic leagues.
Outside of these 2, players like Romelu Lukaku and Alvaro Morata consistently show up in international competitions and contribute a lot of goals for their sides. Outside of this, anyone could be up there. In recent years, we have seen players burst onto the scene thanks to these competitions; players such as Patrick Schick in the last Euros came from nowhere and were towards the top in terms of goalscoring.