After a year of postponement due to the pandemic, European football’s flagship tournament gets underway this evening, and will play right through to 11 July.
24 countries will be battling it out for the trophy, including three UK home nations – England, Scotland, and Wales.
Turkey will face Italy at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome for the first match of the highly-anticipated tournament tonight, with Gareth Southgate’s England squad up against World Cup 2018 finalists Croatia in their first match at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 13 June.
Unlike previous tournaments, Euro 2020 will be the first European Championship to be played across the entire breadth of the continent, using 11 different venues.
England has been placed in Group D, alongside Scotland, Croatia, at the Czech Republic.
Every tournament’s group stage tends to have a so-called ‘group of death’, with Euro 2020’s coming in the form of Group F – which features the 2014 World Cup winners Germany, the reigning world champions France, and the reigning European champions Portugal, with Hungary being the somewhat unlucky nation rounding out the group and therefore needing to produce a moment of magic to come out the other side.
But how will England fare in this year’s tournament? How far are they expected to go? Do they stand a strong chance of making it to the final? Which countries will stand in their way?
Here’s everything you need to know about Euro 2020.
24 countries will be battling it out for the trophy / Credit: Flickr
When is Euro 2020?
The tournament officially kicks off on Friday 11 June in Rome, and ends with the final at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday 11 July.
What are the groups?
Group A: Italy, Turkey, Switzerland, and Wales.
Group B: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, and Russia.
Group C: Austria, Netherlands, North Macedonia, and Ukraine.
Group D: Croatia, Czech Republic, England, and Scotland.
Group E: Poland, Slovakia, Spain, and Sweden.
Group F: France, Germany, Hungary, and Portugal.
Where are the venues?
Amsterdam (Johan Cruijff Arena)
Baku (Olympic Stadium)
Bucharest (National Arena)
Budapest (Puskás Aréna)
Copenhagen (Parken Stadium)
Glasgow (Hampden Park)
London (Wembley Stadium)
Munich (Fußball Arena München)
Rome (Stadio Olimpico)
Seville (La Cartuja Stadium)
St Petersburg (St Petersburg Stadium)
What is the fixture schedule?
The Group Stage will take place between Friday 11 June – Wednesday 23 June, the Knockout Phase will then take place between Saturday 26 June – Tuesday 29 June, the Quarter Finals will happen on Friday 2 and Saturday 3 July, the Semi Finals on Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 July, and it’ll all culminate with the Final on Sunday 11 July.
You can check out the fixture schedule in full on the official UEFA Euro 2020 website here.
What’s England’s route to the final?
It’s easy to get carried away with ourselves when it comes to sporting tournaments such as Euro 2020, and it’s only natural for England fans to be looking ahead at the best way for the squad to make it to the final.
They’ve got to make it to the Knockout Phase first though – but how will they do that?
There’s a number of ways the Group Stage could pan out for England that will determine who they face in the knockouts.
This chart that’s been doing the rounds online might make things a little clearer.
England has been placed in Group D, alongside Scotland, Croatia, at the Czech Republic / Credit: Google
Who is predicted to win?
Predictions will always be predictions, but the bookies over at Paddy Power have set the odds for six countries expected to perform well:
England 9/2
France 11/2
Belgium 6/1
Spain 13/2
Germany 15/2
Portugal 15/2
Where can I watch Euro 2020 in Manchester?
Manchester is a city that’s obsessed with football, so understandably, there’s plenty of venues going all out for the Euros this year.
We’ve been inundated with messages over the past few weeks from our loyal audience keen to find out the best places to catch a match this summer, so we’ve knuckled down and done the leg work for you.
If you’re looking for recommendations, you can find 20 of the best spots to watch Euro 2020 in Manchester city centre this summer here.
Featured Image – Flickr
Sport
Pep Guardiola aims not-so-subtle dig at ‘destructive’ FIFA Club World Cup
Danny Jones
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is the latest to voice his concerns surrounding the ongoing 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, delivering a not-so-subtle dig at the competition.
Ahead of Man City‘s round of 16 match against Al Hilal in this year’s Club World Cup, of which they won all their group stage games, the Catalan head coach has once again come out to criticise the increasingly congested fixture calendar.
His comments come after former Liverpool manager and now Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull, Jürgen Klopp, labelled the current off-season summer run of matches “the worst idea ever.”
Somewhat echoing his statement – or at the very least aligning with it (albeit indirectly) – Pep Guardiola gave his two cents also, claiming that the now extended, 32-team tournament could “destroy” his squad and their fortunes in the next campaign.
Clearly, Pep is far from the biggest of fan of the recently refreshed format, even despite having won the thing on four occasions in the past – the most recent being with Manchester City back in 2023.
Reflecting on what impact he fears the Club World Cup may have on his team next season, Guardiola said: “I try not to think about it, otherwise I will be so anxious. We will rest [for as much time as] the Premier League allows us to.
“And game by game, month by month, we will see. And maybe in November, December, January, ask me, Pep. I may say: ‘So listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The World Cup destroyed us.’ I don’t know, but it’s the first time in our [lives] that that’s happened [a 32-team CWC]. So we will see…”
Unpredictable weather in the United States, where the action is being hosted, has also been the subject of outrage in some cases, with Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca stating, “It’s a joke! It’s not football”, after a major storm delay mid-game pushed meant that one of their games took five hours to finish.
The 54-year-old also insisted that those who were against the tweaked concept “fought a lot” here in England, in UEFA meetings and so on, as was the case with the revision of the new layout of the Champions League, but to no avail.
Jurgen Klopp: "NBA player earns a lot of money & has 4 months of rest per year. Van Dijk didn't even have that in his entire career. Tournaments such as the Club World Cup cannot take place at the expense of players" [Die Welt]
Regarding Klopp, who set this latest chain of criticism, he claims that whoever wins the 2025 Club World Cup is ultimately “pointless” and will be “the worst winner of all time because they’ll have played all summer and then gone straight back into the league.”
In his eyes, the decisions are being made by people who have “never been involved” with the pressure of day-to-day life in professional football and the physical toll of multiple competitions, in particular.
As for who might win the 2025 CWC, it could very well be Man City for a second time, as the Blues are the only team remaining that has a 100% win ratio this year, having most recently thrashed Juventus 5-2 in their last game.
Nevertheless, it seems that the stance of Klopp, Guardiola, Maresca and more is pretty plain: this particular tournament will go down in the record books for the wrong reasons, and they won’t be happy until the format is revisited.
Do you agree with Pep and co. on the Club World Cup controversy?
Featured Images — Man City (screenshot via YouTube)
Sport
The latest on Salford Red Devils financial situation as ‘winding-up’ petition is adjourned
Danny Jones
The current situation at Salford Red Devils is far from ideal, with the rugby league team currently owing hundreds of thousands of pounds in debt, not to mention facing further stress over finances with players owed wages, key personnel leaving and remaining uncertainty over future ownership.
So, why is the board expressing reassurance among supporters following the recent adjournment of a ‘winding-up’ petition, and what exactly does this mean?
It is no doubt a complex issue, but with the season concluding in October and the Greater Manchester club essentially being given a stay of execution, for lack of a better phrase, it’s possible that a corner could hopefully be turned soon.
Here’s everything we know so far about the situation in Salford and where the Red Devils’ finances are currently at.
Salford Red Devils’ finances and more – explained
For a start, they’re late on payroll again this month.
Salford Red Devils players have been told they will not receive their salaries today.https://t.co/ofHTR0uZyN
According to recent reports, Salford Red Devils owe more than half a million pounds to His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at present, with current estimates said to be in the region of £600,000.
The Super League side has fallen into debt due to a number of factors: their own performance as a business, cuts to local funding and a period of spending in terms of recruitment and pre-season preparation under the assumption of a subsidy from Salford City Council (SCC).
However, this would-be uplift – despite it being promised late last year – never came as the Council (having already provided £315k in ‘immediate’ financial aid back in March 2024) U-turned on the decision after it was revealed further backing was not in the budget.
SCC ended up owing around £2 million itself after stepping in to save both SRD and fellow rugby league outfit Swinton Lions, handing out loans to both clubs even prior to purchasing Salford Community Stadium and the surrounding area.
The Council ultimately shelled out north of £7.7m to buy the ground and sever commercial ties with previous owners, Peel. They had hoped to further alleviate pressure on the club, but Salford Red Devils (SRD) had already spent the money they were expecting to receive on new players, training and more.
SRD were then told to sell off a number of players by the league.
With all this in mind, something called a ‘winding-up’ petition – basically a document sent by creditors that demands the immediate liquidation of a company/organisation that owes them money – was filed by HMRC back in May, with the tax authorities demanding payment of the outstanding sum.
However, special dispensation appears to have been made not only due to the complicated and unforeseen circumstances Salford have faced along the way, but also for the sake of the Rugby Football League (RFL) itself, with the Red Devils still seen as a valuable sporting and community asset.
One of those unexpected twists was the takeover by a new consortium led by Dario Berta, whose investment failed to clear in time and resulted in the club being hit with the financial sustainability problem that saw them cutbacks.
In a small bit of good fortune, it has now been decided that the petition to liquidate the SRD has been postponed, though not indefinitely.
As expected, there is good news that the winding-up petition filed by HMRC against Salford Red Devils has been successfully adjourned by the club's representatives in London until after the season has finished in September.
It's important to focus on supporting Salford as they…
— The Game Caller 🗣🎙📻 (@TheGameCaller) June 25, 2025
What could happen next?
The date for coughing up what debt they owe to the tax authorities has now been pushed back to September, meaning they have until then to find the finances, or else they could very well be made insolvent in a matter of months.
However, as per BBC Radio Manchester, those involved in the ongoing process are “confident” that bridging loans will be put in place over the coming days to keep HMRC at bay.
And, nevertheless, head coach Paul Rowley has insisted that he can see “green shoots” starting to emerge around the club, despite still sitting bottom of the table with just one win to their name.
What’s for sure is that the local area isn’t giving up on them, with numerous fundraisers and charity events being set up to help support the club via the official Salford Red Devils Foundation.
Fingers firmly crossed that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
The Manc -
11th June 2021 
