EURO 2024: Teams To Watch

The excitement is building as EURO 2024 approaches and it promises to deliver unforgettable moments throughout the summer. This year’s tournament will feature a stellar lineup of teams, each with its own different brand of football and superstar squads. In this blog, we will look at the top teams and the favourites for the tournament as well as the key players for each nation. From the favourites England to World Cup finalists France and big nations that will hope to perform well like Portugal with Liverpool’s Diogo Jota and Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes.

England’s EURO 2024 Hopes: Can Harry Maguire Lead the Three Lions to Victory?

England will go into the tournament as favourites to win the trophy which gives an indication of how strong the squad is. They have the current Premier League player of the season in Phil Foden of Manchester City, La Liga player of the season Jude Bellingham of Real Madrid and Bundesliga top scorer, Harry Kane who plays for Bayern Munich. The squad also boasts other stars such as, Trent Alexander-Arnold of Liverpool, Conor Gallagher of Chelsea, James Maddison who stars for Tottenham Hotspur and Harry Maguire of Manchester United.

England will fancy their chances of making it out of the group in which they will take on Serbia, Denmark and Slovenia. Their first group stage game will take place on Sunday 16th June against Serbia, they will then play Denmark on Thursday 20th June and their final group stage fixture will take place on Tuesday 25th June against Slovenia. Gareth Southgate will be keen to go all the way in this tournament after losing in the EURO 2020 (Tournament took place in 2021 due to COVID) final against Italy.

World Cup Finalists France Going for Further Glory

Kylian Mbappe, who most consider to be the best player in the world, will lead the line for the French at EURO 2024. Les Bleus boast a squad full of talent from across the world. Mike Maignan from AC Milan is expected to feature in goal, Ibrahima Konate of Liverpool is in contention to start in defense and N’Golo Kante returns to the squad after his Chelsea departure to play football in Saudi Arabia for Al-Ittihad.

France have faired better in the World Cup than in the EUROs recently. They last won the tournament in 2000 and were runners up in 2016. Didier Deschamps will be hoping for a better showing after their incredible performances in the World Cup in Qatar.

Germany’s Hopes Resting on Retiring Kroos

One of Germany’s most successful players and recent Champions League winner, Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos, is set to retire after the EURO 2024 tournament. Kroos will be joined by a host of youthful talent such as Florian Wirtz of Leverkusen and Jamal Musiala from Bayern Munich. The squad will also see Premier League players like Kai Havertz and Pascal Gross join the squad who have found international tournaments difficult in recent years.

Germany were able to reach the semi-finals in 2012 and 2016 but were knocked out in the Round of 16 during the last tournament. Their coach, Julian Nagelsmann will be hoping the mix of experience and youth will be able to take his team further this time around.

Will World Class Rodri drag Spain to a Trophy?

Spain have always boasted incredible talent and while their squad maybe lacks the super star names of the past, the team still remains strong and in contention to win EURO 2024. Their hopes will largely rest on Manchester City’s Rodri. Considered to be the best defensive midfielder in the world and pivotal to City’s success over the past few years, the Spanish will look to build their attacks through him. Chelsea’s Cucurella will also join up with the squad, as well as Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal.

After winning the tournament in 2008 and 2012, the Spanish came close again in the last tournament, reaching the semi-final stage. Can they go one step further this year?

The Best of the Rest

While the winner of EURO 2024 usually comes from one of the top favourites, there have been times that some of the lesser fancied sides have lifted the trophy. Portugal and The Netherlands would be counted amongst those sides for EURO 2024. Portugal were finalists in 2016 but with their talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo beyond his best, it remains to be seen if Portugal can go a long way. Their squad still boasts many other stars, such as Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United and Diogo Jota from Liverpool, so they certainly have the talent to win the whole tournament. The Netherlands are in a similar position. The squad contains huge names like Liverpool captain, Virgil van Dijk and Mathijs de Ligt of Bayern Munich, along with up and coming talents of Micky van de Ven who has impressed for Tottenham Hotspur this season. While they are nowhere near the favourites for the tournament, it would not be a shock to see them go deep into the latter stages.

EURO 2024 kicks off on Friday 14th June with the hosts Germany taking on Scotland with the final due to be a month later on Sunday 14th July at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. It promises to be an exciting tournament while we wait for the new Premier League season to begin. You can register your interest for the 24/25 season for Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and Leeds United hospitality tickets here: Register Your Interest