With Euro 2024 fast approaching, the time has come to get excited about the drama that awaits us as Germany hosts the latest edition of the European Championship.
24 teams will look to be taking home the Henri Delaunay trophy, with December’s group stage draw ensuring there will be plenty of mouthwatering ties to look forward to when the tournament kicks off on Friday 14th June.
Group A sees hosts Germany as clear favourites to progress, though opponents Scotland, Hungary and Switzerland will be no pushovers considering their respective paths to the finals…
Euro 2024 tournament guide: Teams, matches, dates, TV channels, odds & more
Football FanCast has put together a guide for all things Euro 2024, with venues, fixtures, tables, stadiums and more all covered here.
ByStephan Georgiou Euro 2024 Group A fixtures
Fri 14th June, 8pm
Germany
vs
Scotland
Allianz Arena, Munich
Sat 15th June, 2pm
Hungary
vs
Switzerland
RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne
Wed 19th June, 5pm
Germany
vs
Hungary
MHPArena, Stuttgart
Wed 19th June, 8pm
Scotland
vs
Switzerland
RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne
Sun 23rd June, 8pm
Switzerland
vs
Germany
Waldstadion, Frankfurt
Sun 23rd June, 8pm
Scotland
vs
Hungary
MHPArena, Stuttgart
Germany
Julian Nagelsmann
Ilkay Gundogan
16th
9th
n/a
Qualified as hosts
Winners x3 (1972, 1980, 1996)
Who knows what to expect from Germany this summer? They may be the hosts and have a proud history in this competition behind them, but Die Mannschaft's rotten form has seen a tumultuous build-up at times, and all this just 18 months following a second successive group-stage exit from the World Cup.
With no qualifiers under their belt, their series of friendlies since disappointing in Qatar were hugely underwhelming, with just 3 victories in the 11 fixtures that followed, which included a five-game winless streak that cost Hansi Flick his job.
Replacement Julian Nagelsmann has steadied the ship following a terrible international double-header in November, as Germany head into their home tournament on a four-match unbeaten run.
Mon 3rd June
Germany 0-0 Ukraine
Fri 7th June
Germany 2-1 Greece
Meanwhile, such is the enigma of this German team, it is difficult to identify their standout star. Leroy Sane will be among the more experienced players at the top of their game heading into the tournament, so plenty may look to him to inspire his nation to glory this summer.
Elsewhere, Florian Wirtz may be finally ready to make his mark on the international stage after missing the World Cup through injury, in an unpredictable team that is nevertheless chock-full of stars.
Position
Player
Club
Goalkeeper
Oliver Baumann
Hoffenheim
Goalkeeper
Manuel Neuer
Bayern Munich
Goalkeeper
Marc-Andre ter Stegen
Barcelona
Defender
Waldemar Anton
Stuttgart
Defender
Benjamin Henrichs
RB Leipzig
Defender
Joshua Kimmich
Bayern Munich
Defender
Robin Koch
Frankfurt
Defender
Maximilian Mittelstadt
Stuttgart
Defender
David Raum
RB Leipzig
Defender
Antonio Rudiger
Real Madrid
Defender
Nico Schlotterbeck
Borussia Dortmund
Defender
Jonathan Tah
Bayer Leverkusen
Midfielder
Robert Andrich
Bayer Leverkusen
Midfielder
Emre Can
Borussia Dortmund
Midfielder
Chris Fuhrich
Stuttgart
Midfielder
Pascal Gross
Brighton
Midfielder
Ilkay Gundogan
Barcelona
Midfielder
Toni Kroos
Real Madrid
Midfielder
Jamal Musiala
Bayern Munich
Midfielder
Leroy Sane
Bayern Munich
Midfielder
Florian Wirtz
Bayer Leverkusen
Forward
Maximilian Beier
Hoffenheim
Forward
Niclas Fullkrug
Borussia Dortmund
Forward
Kai Havertz
Arsenal
Forward
Thomas Muller
Bayern Munich
Forward
Deniz Undav
Stuttgart
Scotland
Steve Clarke
Andy Robertson
39
21st
Scott McTominay (7)
Group A runners-up, 17 points
Group stage x3 (1992, 1996, 2020)
Perhaps compared to the hosts, the Tartan Army can enter this European Championship with far more enthusiasm. Following their qualification for a first international tournament in over two decades at Euro 2020, Steve Clarke’s side qualified for successive Euros with relative ease, threatening to topple Spain in the process.
And their qualifying exploits – which also saw them overcome Erling Haaland’s Norway and play-off qualifiers Georgia – will surely have Scotland fancying their chances in a competitive-looking Group A.
Mon 3rd June
Gibraltar 0-2 Scotland
Fri 7th June
Scotland 2-2 Finland
Scott McTominay, Scotland’s top scorer in qualifying, will be hoping to spearhead his side to the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time, while Andy Robertson will be banking on feeling fully fit following his injury issues in the build-up. With third place potentially good enough to make the last 16, this could be Scotland’s year to make their mark.
Position
Player
Club
Goalkeeper
Zander Clark
Hearts
Goalkeeper
Angus Gunn
Norwich
Goalkeeper
Liam Kelly
Motherwell
Defender
Liam Cooper
Leeds
Defender
Grant Hanley
Norwich
Defender
Jack Hendry
Al-Ettifaq
Defender
Ross McCrorie
Bristol City
Defender
Scott McKenna
Copenhagen
Defender
Ryan Porteous
Watford
Defender
Anthony Ralston
Celtic
Defender
Andy Robertson
Liverpool
Defender
Greg Taylor
Celtic
Defender
Kieran Tierney
Real Sociedad
Midfielder
Stuart Armstrong
Southampton
Midfielder
Ryan Christie
Bournemouth
Midfielder
Billy Gilmour
Brighton
Midfielder
Ryan Jack
Rangers
Midfielder
John McGinn
Aston Villa
Midfielder
Callum McGregor
Celtic
Midfielder
Kenny McLean
Norwich
Midfielder
Scott McTominay
Man Utd
Forward
Che Adams
Southampton
Forward
Tommy Conway
Bristol City
Forward
James Forrest
Celtic
Forward
Lewis Morgan
New York Red Bulls
Forward
Lawrence Shankland
Hearts
Ranking every team to win the European Championship
We have ranked every team to win the European Championship since its inaugural edition in 1960.
ByJamie Rooke Hungary
Marco Rossi
Dominik Szoboszlai
26th
14th
Dominik Szoboszlai, Barnabas Varga (4)
Group G winners, 18 points
Third place (1964)
They may not be the international giants they once were, but Hungary are arguably having their best period for many a year. Qualifying for a third straight European Championship having not appeared at any major tournament from 1986 to 2016, this is something of a renaissance for the Magyars.
And they are not here by chance, either. Their place in Group A comes as second seeds, ahead of more established European outfits such as Croatia and the Netherlands.
Tue 4th June
Republic of Ireland 2-1 Hungary
Sat 8th June
Hungary 3-0 Israel
Euro 2020 saw them hold France and Germany to draws, while the period since then included wins over England and Germany in the Nations League. In fact, Hungary were on a 14-match unbeaten run, with Italy and Serbia the only nations to beat them in the last two years before their recent friendly defeat to the Republic of Ireland.
Dominik Szoboszlai is the undisputed poster boy, though there is clearly more than meets the eye for this team, as there is plenty of top-level experience, including from the likes of Peter Gulacsi, Attila Szalai and Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez.
Position
Player
Club
Goalkeeper
Denes Dibusz
Ferencvaros
Goalkeeper
Peter Gulacsi
RB Leipzig
Goalkeeper
Peter Szappanos
Paksi FC
Defender
Botond Balogh
Parma
Defender
Endre Botka
Ferencvaros
Defender
Marton Dardai
Hertha Berlin
Defender
Attila Fiola
Fehervar
Defender
Milos Kerkez
Bournemouth
Defender
Adam Lang
Omonoia Nicosia
Defender
Zsolt Nagy
Puskas Akademia
Defender
Loic Nego
Hoffenheim
Defender
Willi Orban
RB Leipzig
Defender
Attila Szalai
Hoffenheim
Midfielder
Bendeguz Bolla
Servette
Midfielder
Daniel Gazdag
Philadelphia Union
Midfielder
Mihaly Kata
MTK Budapest
Midfielder
Laszlo Kleinheisler
Hajduk Split
Midfielder
Adam Nagy
Spezia
Midfielder
Andras Schafer
Union Berlin
Midfielder
Callum Styles
Barnsley
Midfielder
Dominik Szoboszlai
Liverpool
Forward
Martin Adam
Ulsan HD
Forward
Kevin Csoboth
Ujpest FC
Forward
Krisztofer Horvath
Kecskemeti
Forward
Roland Sallai
Freiburg
Forward
Barnabas Varga
Ferencvaros
Switzerland
Murat Yakin
Granit Xhaka
19th
10th
Zeki Amdouni (6)
Group I runners-up, 17 points
Quarter-finals (2020)
This may be the last chance for several of Switzerland’s experienced stars to go for European glory. Granit Xhaka, Xherdan Shaqiri, Yann Sommer and Fabian Schar are all over 30 and might not be in the running once Euro 2028 comes around.
Given they were seeded in pot 4 in the group stage draw, they may have been relatively pleased to avoid some of the big guns at this point.
Tue 4th June
Switzerland 4-0 Estonia
Sat 8th June
Switzerland 1-1 Austria
And with the likes of Xhaka and Sommer entering the finals as league champions, they may just be peaking at the right time to spring something of a surprise in Group A.
Meanwhile, their opponents would be remiss to ignore the threat of Burnley’s Zeki Amdouni, their top scorer in qualifying with six – which was level with Erling Haaland and Bruno Fernandes.
Position
Player
Club
Goalkeeper
Gregor Kobel
Borussia Dortmund
Goalkeeper
Yvon Mvogo
Lorient
Goalkeeper
Yann Sommer
Inter
Defender
Manuel Akanji
Man City
Defender
Nico Elvedi
Borussia Monchengladbach
Defender
Ricardo Rodriguez
Torino
Defender
Fabian Schar
Newcastle
Defender
Leonidas Stergiou
Stuttgart
Defender
Silvan Widmer
Mainz
Defender
Cedric Zesiger
Wolfsburg
Midfielder
Michel Aebischer
Bologna
Midfielder
Remo Freuler
Bologna
Midfielder
Ardon Jashari
Luzern
Midfielder
Fabian Rieder
Stade Rennais
Midfielder
Xherdan Shaqiri
Chicago Fire
Midfielder
Vincent Sierro
Toulouse
Midfielder
Granit Xhaka
Bayer Leverkusen
Midfielder
Denis Zakaria
Monaco
Forward
Zeki Amdouni
Burnley
Forward
Kwadwo Duah
Ludogorets
Forward
Breel Embolo
Monaco
Forward
Dan Ndoye
Bologna
Forward
Noah Okafor
Milan
Forward
Renato Steffen
Lugano
Forward
Ruben Vargas
Augsburg
Forward
Steven Zuber
AEK Athens