Team bases
The "Team Base Camps" are the accommodation and training bases for the teams. From an initial list of 38 potential locations (21 in Poland, 17 in Ukraine),[17] the national associations chose their locations in 2011. These bases were the initial destination for all teams upon their arrival. The teams will then both train and reside in these locations throughout the tournament, traveling to games staged away from their bases.
Thirteen teams are staying in Poland and three in Ukraine, in the following towns:[18]
Poland-based
Croatia – Warka(5 June)
Czech Republic – Wrocław(3 June)
Denmark – Kołobrzeg(4 June)
England – Kraków(6 June)
Spain – Gniewino(5 June)
Germany – Gdańsk(4 June)
Greece – Jachranka(3 June)
Italy – Kraków(5 June)
Netherlands – Kraków(4 June)
Poland – Warsaw(28 May)
Portugal – Opalenica(4 June)
Republic of Ireland – Sopot(5 June)
Russia – Warsaw(3 June)
Ukraine-based
France – Donetsk(6 June)
Sweden – Koncha-Zaspa, Kiev(6 June)
Ukraine – Chapaevka, Kiev(6 June)
Note: Date in parenthesis is the date of the team's arrival
Qualification
The draw for the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying competition took place in Warsaw on 7 February 2010.[19] 51 teams entered to compete for the 14 remaining places in the finals, alongside co-hosts Poland and Ukraine. These teams were divided into nine groups, with the draw using the new UEFA national team coefficient for the first time in order to determine the seedings.
The qualifying process began in August 2010 and concluded in November 2011. At the conclusion of the qualifying group stage in October 2011, the nine group winners qualified automatically, with the second placed team with the best ranking also doing so. The remaining eight teams who finished second in their respective groups contested two-legged play-offs, with the winner of each tie qualifying for the finals.
Participating teams
The finals will feature sixteen national teams, as has been the format since 1996. Some European football associations were in favour of expanding the tournament to 24 teams, although the number of UEFA members had hardly increased since the last tournament extension in 1996 (53 in April 2006 compared to 48 for Euro 1996).[20] In April 2007, UEFA's Executive Committee formally decided against an expansion for 2012.[21]
Twelve of the sixteen finalists participated at the previous tournament in 2008, with England and Denmark returning having last participated in 2004. The Republic of Ireland return after an absence of 24 years to make their second appearance at a European finals. One of the co-hosts, Ukraine, make their debut as an independent nation, having previously won the inaugural competition in 1960 as part of the Soviet Union.
Euro 2008 winners Spain have qualified to defend their title. They will compete to win an unprecedented third consecutive major tournament, having won both UEFA Euro 2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The sixteen finalists who will participate in the final tournament are:
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment