The group to kick off the tournament contains Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Russia. 4 teams that will all think they have a chance of going through to the quarter finals.
Czech Republic
The Czechs are quite a young team with a few experienced cookies such as Champions League winner Petr Cech and ex Liverpool player Milan Baros, as well as Arsenal midefielder Tomas Rosicky. They finished second in their qualifying group, just ahead of Scotland and 11 points behind Spain.
Predicted finish: 3rd in group.
Greece
A team of relatively unknown players, except for ex Manchester City striker Georgios Samaras, but only 1 or 2 of the Euro 2004 squad remains. They finished top in a pretty easy qualifying group, but did finish 2 points ahead of Croatia.
Predicted finish: 4th in group.
Poland
Co-hosts who have a few well known players such as Wojciech Szczęsny, Robert Lewandowski and Jakub Błaszczykowski, but apart from them, most of the players a relatively unknown. However, being hosts always helps in major tournaments.
Predicted finish: 2nd in group, Quarter Finals.
Russia
Arguably the best team in the group, with experienced Premier League players like Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andrei Arshavin, as well as Yuri Zhirkov and Pavel Pogrebnyak. Apart from that, almost all of the other players play in Russia, so whether they can perform against top European sides remains to be seen.
Predicted finish: 1st in group, Quarter Finals.
Next up is Group B, which is the'group of death' this time round, containing Denmark, Germany, Netherlands and Portugal.
Denmark
A team full of players that people in this country will recognise such as Daniel Agger, Nicklas Bendtner, Anders Lindegaard to name just 3. Liverpool fans will note that Christian Poulsen is in the squad and remember him for very little. It's just a shame the Danes aren't in an easier group, they're always good in tournaments because they're better than the sum of their parts.
Predicted finish: 4th in group.
Germany
One of the favourites to win Euro 2012, with a team full of youth and experience. Miroslav Klose is still going and only a few goals off Germany legend Gerd Muller's all time international tally. A team that no one wants to play because of their organisation and attacking threat (as well as typical Germany efficiency). However, because of the large amount of young players in the team, there are questions over their ability to handle high pressure situations.
Predicted finish: 1st in group, Finalists.
Netherlands
2010 World Cup finalists who need to build their reputation again after 8 yellow cards and 1 red in the final. Always good in tournaments and with a team that's got attackers like Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, (they also have Rafael van der Vaart) they'll certainly be a threat , but not strong enough in defence.
Predicted finish: 2nd in group, Semi Finals.
Portugal
Constantly written off by BBC pundit Mark Lawrenson and called 'centred around Ronaldo' by others, but it's not like they don't have any other good players! Premier League players Nani and Raul Meireles are included and players João Moutinho and Silvestre Varela both won the Portuguese League this season with Porto. However, there are questions over the team's capabilities in big tournaments and finished 2nd in their qualifying group behind Denmark.
Predicted finish: 3rd in group.
Group C is next, which features Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010 winners Spain, as well as Italy, Croatia and Ireland.
Croatia
A classic exmaple of a team with 3 or 4 quality players and nothing much else, Premier League players Luka Modric and Nikica Jelavic, as well as former Arsenal striker Eduardo. They finished 2nd in their qualifying group.
Predicted finish: 4th in group.
Italy
The Italian squad for this tournament has an average age of 27, which is younger than usual for an Italian squad. However, most of their best players are over 30 and with Mario Balotelli in tow (closely followed by his child-like attitude) it could be an interesting few weeks for the Italian team, especially as Mario will be walking off the pitch every game for being racially abused (I support him 100% on that by the way).
Predicted finish: 2nd in group, Quarter Finals.
Republic of Ireland
Another great example of a team that's better than the sum of their parts. Players like Robbie Keane and Damien Duff were both great in their heydays and will be playing alongside some up and coming players like James McClean and Shane Long. The squad also features the Premier League's Jonathan Walters, Richard Dunne and Shay Given. Once again, it's a shame they're not in an easier group.
Predicted finish: 3rd in group.
The best team in the group by far, they won the last European Championships and the 2010 World Cup. Some world class players in midfield and defence, but their strikers don't always step up to the mark. No David Villa this time so it's up to Fernando Torres to show what he's made of. Youngster Fernando Llorente will be aware that he could become their first choice centre forward if Torres doesn't play well. There's no question they have what it takes to get to the final, but Barcelona were been found out by Real Madrid and Chelsea this season, so Spain might fall at the final hurdle.
Predicted finish: 1st in group, Finalists.
The final group is Group D, with England, France, Sweden and Ukraine.
England
Where do you want me to start? So many things that I could say about the England team but I'll try and limit it! First of all, we have a good manager in Roy Hodgson, the only reason people are on his back is because everyone wanted Harry Redknapp, if he wasn't around then Roy would have been the 1st choice for the media. However,I have to question why Hodgson picked some of the players that he did. For starters, Micah Richards and Rio Ferdinand should be in the squad, no question. Stewart Downing's inclusion was a strange decision, as was the decision to replace Frank Lampard with Jordan Henderson. Roy Hodgson has made them hard to beat, but a lack of attacking threat in the first two games could hinder their chances of finishing top of the group.
Predicted finish: 2nd in group, Quarter Finals.
France
A team full of good attacking players like Franck Ribery, Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa as well as Oliver Giroud, who is being chased by Manchester United and Arsenal. However, there are questions over their defence, especially seeing as their two best defenders are both left backs. They could cause a few problems for England in their first game and will be a threat in the knockout round too.
Predicted finish: 1st in group, Semi Finals.
Sweden
An experienced team that features one of the world's top strikers Zlatan Ibrahimovich and two ex Premier League players who are 34 and 35. Younger talent includes Sunderland's Seb Larsson and Blackburn's Martin Olsson. However, they will fancy their chances of going through if they beat Ukraine in their first game and England and France draw.
Predicted finish: 3rd in group.
Ukraine
Co-hosts who many people in this country know nothing about, this is probably because only 2 of their players play outside of Ukraine; Anatoliy Tymoshchuk and Andriy Voronin. The latter missed a sitter in a Euro 2012 warm game and the former plays for Bayern Munich. Also in the squad is former Chelsea and Milan player Andriy Shevchenko.
Predicted finish: 4th in group.
The next few weeks promise to offer good football played by some of the world's best players, but high levels of racism in Polish and Ukrainian football could spoil the tournament. After reading this I suppose you want to know who I think will win the tournament out of Spain and Germany, but to be honest I can't decide.
Have a good summer non sports fans!
TB 2012
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