Italy, reigning European champions, inherited the strongest Euro 2024 group with Spain, winners of the last Nations League, Croatia, third in the 2022 World Cup and League Nations finalist, and Albania.
The poster for this group B will see the Spaniards and Italians competing against each other on June 20th in Gelsenkirchen. This group of death thus brings together three of the four semi-finalists of the last Nations League, as Italy finished third against the Netherlands in June 2023.
Spain, with its talented youngsters, seems to be an outsider on the way to a fourth European title after 1964, 2008 and 2012, even if the serious injury (rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament in the right knee) of Barça’s centerpiece, Gavi, very uncertain for the competition, casts a shadow over La Roja.
Croatia is still buoyed by their brilliant midfielder Luka Modric, who at 38 has one last chance to finally win a major title for the checked selection.
In the opening match on June 14, Germany, the host country that has been in crisis for several years, will face Scotland, which qualified by finishing second to Spain in its qualifying phase but eliminated Norway through Erling Haaland.
France, which is one of the favorites to win the European Championship, inherited an equally strong group with the Netherlands, Austria and a play-off, which could be Robert Lewandowski’s Poland if they do well in the spring games against Wales, Estonia Performances shows and Finland.
The other favorite, England, European runners-up in summer 2021, was placed in a group with Slovenia, Denmark and Serbia. Teammates Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham will face Serbia on June 16 before moving on to face Denmark in a Euro 2021 semi-final rematch.
Finally, Portugal, with the indestructible Cristiano Ronaldo, was rather spared from the draw as it has a group largely within reach that includes a play-off (Georgia, Luxembourg, Greece or Kazakhstan), the Czech Republic and Turkey.
The composition of the six groups
- Group A: Germany, Hungary, Scotland, Switzerland
- Group B: Spain, Albania, Croatia, Italy
- Group C: England, Denmark, Slovenia, Serbia
- Group D: France, Austria, Netherlands, one play-off player (Poland, Estonia, Wales or Finland)
- Group E: Belgium, Romania, Slovakia, one play-off (Israel, Iceland, Bosnia or Ukraine)
- Group F: Portugal, Turkey, Czech Republic, one play-off (Georgia, Luxembourg, Greece or Kazakhstan)