The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship , commonly referred to as Euro 2008 , is the 13th UEFA European Football Championship. The tournament, which is hosted by Austria and Switzerland, began on 7 June 2008 and is scheduled to conclude with the final at Ernst Happel Stadion in Vienna on 29 June 2008 .
Sixteen teams are participating in the tournament. Austria and Switzerland automatically qualified as hosts; Greece and Portugal, Germany and Netherlands, Russia and Sweden, Croatia and Czech REpublic, Turkey and France, Romania and Spain - the remaining 14 teams were determined through qualifying matches which began in August 2006. The winner of Euro 2008 will qualify for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa , but will not be obliged to participate in it.
Eight Venues of Austria and Switzerland host European Football Championship. Ernst Happel Stadion, Hypo-Arena, Wals Siezenheim Stadion, St. Jakob-Park, Stade de Suisse, Stade de Genève and Letzigrund - the stadiums where sixteen team contest for the champion's title. Greece are the defending champions, having won tournament in 2004 but Euro 2008 is not so successive as the previous one for them.
There are four groups in the tournament. This year the draw took place on 27 January 2006 in Montreux, Switzerland.
If in the groups A and B we can saw the leaders from the beginning, I mean Portugal and Turkey, Croatia and Germany (this teams always showed great results in any EURO championships) - the group C (the Group of Death) was very interesting to watch all the games. Spain left no chances for other participants from group D. Spain became the leader of its group.
The next Euro tournament will be hosted by Poland and Ukraine. The UEFA Euro 2012, commonly referred to as Euro 2012 , will be the 14th European Championship for national football teams sanctioned by UEFA.
Teams that participated in Euro 2008 are:
Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands national football team ( Nicknames: Oranje, Clockwork Orange, Orange Crush, The Orangemen ) is the national football team of the Netherlands. The Netherlands National Football Team was founded in 1889. Clockwork Orange made their first appearance at the World Cup final tournament in 1934 losing 3-2 against Switzerland, and after coming back in 1938, the Dutch national team entered the wilderness of world football. The head coach of the team is Marco van Basten . The team captain is Edwin van der Sar. He is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper. The Orangemen is controlled by the Royal Netherlands Football Association.
Swiss national football team
The Swiss national football team also known as the Schweizer Nati is the national football team of Switzerland and is controlled by the Swiss Football Association .Switzerland have qualified for 7 FIFA World Cup finals. In their debut appearance in 1934 they lost a close quarter-final 3-2 to Czechoslovakia, 1938 and when the country hosted the event in 1954. The team reached the quarter-final by defeating Germany by 4-2 four years later. Switzerland also won silver at the 1924 Olympics.
Austria national football team
The Austria national football team is controlled by the Austrian Football Association (German: Österreichischer Fußball Bund). Austria has qualified for seven World Cups. The country has not yet qualified for a European Championship itself. It will play in the tournament for the first time in 2008 as co-hosts the event with Switzerland. In 2008 they played their first match against long time rivals Germany in Vienna. Austria played very well, but still lost 0-3. The next match of the year was against the Netherlands in Austria, Austria started off brilliantly going 3-0 up, however the Netherlands ended up coming back and winning 4-3. Austria's next match was against Nigeria (27.5.2008), which ended in a 1-1 draw.
Turkey national football team
The Turkey national football team is the national football team of Turkey and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation . They are affiliated with UEFA . Turkey had many ups and downs, for example they made a nice rise to the international scene in the 1950s but lost it in the 1970s. Reaching 3rd place at the 2002 FIFA World Cup was the team's highest achievement. Turkey also reached the quarter-finals at Euro 2000 and was the 3rd at the 2003 Confederations Cup. After these successes Turkey returned the reputation as a strong force in world football again.
The Turkish team failed to qualify for Euro 2004 on play-offs due to a loss to Latvia after finishing second in their group. The Turkish team once again missed out on the finals after failing to win a play-off. Switzerland appeared stronger than Turkey and Turkish team was only the second.
Italian national football team
Italian national football team ( Nazionale italiana di calcio ) represents Italy in international football competition. They are the current World Champions, having won the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Therefore national team members are nicknamed Azzurri. Italy is among the top teams in international football and the second most successful national team having won four World Cups (1934, 1938, 1984, 2006). They can add one European championship (1968), two Central European International Cup and one Olympic Gold Medal (1936).
Italy played in the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying Group B, along with France. Italy won the group, with France being the runner-up. After the tournament with France, Italy saved chances to play in quarterfinal.
Croatian national football team
The Croatian national football team represents Croatia in international matches. The current team has been in existence since 1990 and was recognized by FIFA and UEFA in the summer of 1992, one year after Croatia's independence from Yugoslavia. The team was FIFA 's "Best Mover of the Year" in 1994 and 1998. They were rated as high as third, and as low as 125th (though this low rating was only because Croatia were not ranked prior to their independence, and it therefore took some time to build up points when they started playing independently). They are still undefeated in all competitive matches they played on home soil since 1994. They also qualified for both 2002 and 2006 World Cups without losing a qualifying match.
Romania national football team
The Romania national football team is the national football team of Romania and is controlled by the Romanian Football Federation. Romania is one of only four national teams, the other three being Brazil, France, and Belgium, that took part in the first three World Cups.
They only qualified for 1970, 1990, 1994 and 1998 editions since that Cups. Their finest hour came at the 1994 World Cup where Romania, led by Gheorghe Hagi, reached the quarterfinals, defeating Argentina in their way before losing to Sweden on penalty shootouts. At the Euros, Romania's best performance was in 2000 when they advanced to quarterfinals from a group with Germany, Portugal and England before falling to eventual runners-up Italy .
Romania also played at Euro 1984, Euro 1996 and Euro 2008.
French national football team
The French national football team is fielded by the French Football Federation. France was one of the four European teams that participated at the inaugural World Cup in 1930. In the 1980s, led by midfielder and captain Michel Platini, the team reached semi-finals at both the 1982 and 1986 World Cups. They won the 1984 European Championship. France is one of the most successful football nations in the world. France and Argentina are the only national teams in the world which have won the four most important titles organized by FIFA: World Cup, Gold medal in football in the Olympic Games, Confederations Cup, and the Continental Cup.
Swedish national football team
The Swedish national football team is the national football team of Sweden and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association.
Sweden has traditionally been a strong team in international football, with eleven World Cup appearances and three medals in the Olympics. The Swedish team finished second in the 1958 World Cup , when it was the host team, being beaten by Brazil 5-2 in the final. Sweden has also finished third twice, in 1950 and 1994. In 1938, they finished fourth.
Sweden competed in Group B at the 2006 World Cup. Their squad for the tournament features players who play club football in eleven different nations. Sweden started the World Cup slowly. Sweden finished group play with five points - enough to finish second in its' group and advance to 2008 European Championship Qualifying.
Sweden finished second in Group F behind Spain, thus qualifying for the finals. The campaign included an abandoned match away to Denmark, for which Sweden were awarded a 3-0 win by UEFA.
Spain National Football Team
The Spain National Football Team, commonly referred to as La Furia, is the national football team of Spain.
Spain has a reputation for underachievement in the FIFA World Cup , with their best finish being fourth place in 1950 despite often being among the pre-tournament favorites. They often start well, but struggle considerably in the later stages, which is frustrating given the team's supposedly enormous talent and diligence. Their only senior level tournament victory is the 1964 European Championship , which they hosted. They also won the gold medal when they hosted the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, and in the 1999 World Youth Championship in Nigeria. Their current FIFA ranking is 4th.
Spain struggled throughout the 2006 World Cup qualifying stage. Spain were in group 7 with Serbia & Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Belgium, Lithuania, and San Marino. Spain qualified for the final tournament after defeating Slovakia 6-2 on aggregate. Spain were drawn into Group H with Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia. Spain fell 3-1 in the second round by the more experienced France team. Spain and Brazil shared the 2006 FIFA Fair Play Award.
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). At the last World Cup they were 4th. Portugal have qualified four times for the FIFA World Cup; 1966, 1986, 2002 and 2006. The first appearance saw them reach the semi final, losing 2-1 at Wembley to the eventual world champions England. For the World Cup Portugal qualified in 1986 and 2002. In the 1986 tournament, players went on strike over prize-money and refused to train between their first and the second games.
Euro 2004 was held in Portugal. Portugal, as the host nation, lost the first game against Greece, Greece winning 2-1. They got their first win against Russia 2-0 and also beat Spain 1-0. They went through and went on to play against England. It was an entertaining game to watch, it went on to penalties and Portugal went through with Ricardo scoring the wining penalty. Portugal beat Holland 2-1 in the semi-final with a lovely goal from Maniche. They were eventually beaten by rank outsiders Greece by a goal to Nil, credits to Greek striker, Angelos Charisteas . Previously, on the opening match, Greece beat Portugal 2-1. This is the first time in the history of the competition that the final featured the same two teams as the opening match.
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team is the national football team of Greece. Greece had previously participated in a European Championship only in Euro 1980, but their first win did not come until the first match of Euro 2004, a 2-1 win over the hosts Portugal. Greece started the qualification process for the Euro 2004 in poor fashion losing at home to Spain and away to Ukraine both times with a 2-0 scoreline. As Euro 2004 winners, Greece qualified for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany. Greece were drawn into Group A along with 2002 World Cup champions Brazil, 2004 Asian champions Japan, and 2003 North America champions Mexico. Greece lost 3-0 to Brazil and 1-0 to Japan and drew 0-0 with Mexico in a tournament.
After winning the Euro 2004 , Greece were considered favorites to top their group, in the 2006 World Cup qualifyings . The team was drawn into Group 2 along with Ukraine, Turkey, Denmark, Albania, Georgia and Kazakhstan in what was considered the toughest qualifying group.
Russia national football team
The Russia national football team is the national football team of Russia and is controlled by the Football Union of Russia. Russia qualified for two World Cups (1994, 2002) and three European Championships (1996, 2004, 2008), but failed to get beyond the first round on first two occasions. FIFA considers the Russia national team the direct descendant of the CIS and USSR national teams.
Having failed to qualify Russia for the 2006 World Cup , Yuri Semin stepped down several weeks later and Russia began looking for a new manager. It was clear that a foreign manager would be needed as most of the high profile Russian coaches were not successful with the national team. On April 10, 2006, it was announced that then Australia manager Guus Hiddink would lead Russia in the Euro 2008 qualification campaign.
For the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign. Russia were drawn into group E with England, Croatia, Israel, FYR Macedonia, Estonia, and Andorra. Russia were able to qualify in second place with 24 points above England who had 23 points.
Czech Republic national football team
The career of Czech Republic football team began in 1903. They played seven matches between 1903 and 1908, six of them against Hungary and one against England. That Czech Republic was a part of Austria-Hungary.
Despite finishing top of Euro 2008 qualifying group D, the Czech Republic looked a pale shadow of their 1996 counterparts. We can excluded Germany, but the Czechs still made heavy weather at times of disposing of San Marino and Cyprus and struggled to a 1-1 draw against an Ireland side in disarray in Dublin. The age old problem for the Czechs is that of consistency. The 2006 World Cup started with an impressive victory against the USA, but was followed by successive 2-0 defeats against Ghana and Italy.
Poland national football team
The Poland national football team is the national football team of Poland. Polish Football Association - founded in 1919 the Polish Football Association received FIFA affiliation in 1923 and UEFA affiliation in 1955.
They won Silver medal in the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal and in the 1992 on Summer Olympics in Barcelona. In the World Cup, Poland finished third twice: in 1974 and 1982. In the semi-finals they came up against the on-form Italians and lost by 2-0. They went on to defeat France 3-2 and claimed third place overall. The 2006 FIFA World Cup is Poland's 7th successful World Cup qualifying campaign.
German national football team
The German national football team is the football team representing the country of Germany in international competition since 1908. At Germany's last two appearances in a Final of a major tournament - Euro 96 and World Cup 2002. Germany won their first major international title after the reunification at Euro 96, becoming European champions for the third time. They defeated England, who were the hosts, again on penalty kicks (6-5, after a 1-1 draw) in the semi-finals, and the Czech Republic 2-1 in the final, a match decided by a golden goal scored by Oliver Bierhoff. The 1998 World Cup Germany were again eliminated by a less heralded opponent in the quarter-finals.