European Championship 2024: What You Need to Know About the Competition

After UEFA's centenary celebration saw the Euro 2020 festivities spread across multiple countries, normalcy returns to the European Championship with the tournament being hosted by a single country, in this case, Germany.
 

This will be the third time (including the Euro 2020 matches held in Munich) that the homeland of Beckenbauer will host the European Championship finals. Everyone is hoping to witness great matches and goals, reminiscent of those seen in the German stadiums during Euro 88, which ended with the victory of the Netherlands led by the prolific Marco Van Basten.
 

For the eighth consecutive time, the European Championship will feature the national team, which, eight years after winning Euro 2016, will enter the competition with the hope of bringing Portugal's second Henri Delaunay trophy and joining the exclusive group of teams that have repeated victories in the competition.
 

Qualified Teams

In addition to our national team, the European Championship 2024 will feature 23 other teams, including debutant Georgia (who defeated Greece in the qualification play-offs).
 

Thus, in the European Championship 2024, we will have the following teams:
 

Germany (host country), Albania, Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Croatia, Denmark, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, France, Georgia, Hungary, England, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, PORTUGAL, Romania, Serbia, Switzerland, Turkey, and Ukraine.
 

Groups of European Championship 2024

Since the Euro 2016 of our contentment, the final phase of the European Championship is contested by 24 teams, which are subsequently divided into six groups of four.
 

The European Championship 2024 will be no different:
 

- Group A: Germany, Scotland, Hungary, and Switzerland
 

- Group B: Spain, Italy, Albania, and Croatia
 

- Group C: England, Denmark, Serbia, and Slovenia
 

- Group D: France, Poland, Netherlands, and Austria
 

- Group E: Belgium, Slovakia, Romania, and Ukraine
 

- Group F: PORTUGAL, Czechia, Turkey, and Georgia
 

The top two teams in each group and the four best third-placed teams will qualify for the round of 16.
 

It is worth recalling that in 2016, our national team was crowned European champion after finishing third in their group stage.
 

Dates and Stadiums for the Euro 2024 Matches

Mark your calendars: the European Championship 2024 starts on 14 June with a tantalising Germany vs Scotland match at the fabulous Allianz Arena in Munich at 8 PM Lisbon time.
 

Four days later, this time in Leipzig, Portugal kicks off its campaign against Czechia at 8 PM Lisbon time.
 

The group stage will run until 26 June, with the round of 16 matches starting on 29 June.
 

The quarter finals will take place on 5 and 6 July, with the semi-finals on 9 and 10 July.
 

On 14 July, the historic Olympiastadion in Berlin, where the 2006 World Cup final between France and Italy was held, will be the stage for the two surviving teams to compete for the Henri Delaunay trophy.
 

We have already mentioned the Allianz Arena (70,076 spectators) in Munich, which will host the opening match of the European Championship, the Red Bull Arena (42,959 spectators) where Portugal will play its first group match, and the legendary Olympiastadion in Berlin (74,461 spectators) that will host the final, but the Euro 2024 matches will also be held in other stadiums and cities across Germany, such as:
 

- Dortmund: Westfalenstadion, 65,849 spectators;
 

- Stuttgart: MPH Arena, 54,906 spectators;
 

- Gelsenkirchen: Arena AufSchalke, 54,740 spectators;
 

- Frankfurt: Waldstadion, 54,697 spectators;
 

- Hamburg: Volksparkstadion, 52,245 spectators;
 

- Düsseldorf: Merkur-Spiel Arena, 51,031 spectators;
 

- Cologne: RheinEnergieStadion, 49,827 spectators.
 

Portugal’s Path to the Dream

When the national anthem plays at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig on 18 June, it will be the ninth time (1984, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024) that the Portuguese national team participates in a European Football Championship, this time with very real hopes of repeating the epic victory of 2016.
 

However, before the national heroes’ step onto German soil, Roberto Martinez's team will play three preparation matches.
 

Two weeks after the announcement of the 26-man squad (on 21 May), Portugal begins to "warm up" for the competition with a preparation match against Finland at Alvalade at 7:45 PM.
 

On 8 June, the old National Stadium will host another preparation match for the national team, this time against Croatia. Before heading to Marienfeld, the training centre that hosted the national colours during the 2006 World Cup, Portugal will play a farewell match against the Republic of Ireland in Aveiro.
 

Upon arrival in Germany, Portugal begins its journey towards the dream against Czechia on 18 June in Leipzig. In the second round, they will once again face Turkey (the fourth time in the European finals), this time in Dortmund.
 

At the end of the group stage, the team will head to a venue of good memory for Portuguese football: Gelsenkirchen, the site of FC Porto's victory in the 2004 UEFA Champions League. It is here, home of Schalke 04, that the team will face debutant Georgia and as hoped, celebrate qualifying for the round of 16 of the competition.