The 2020 (2021) UEFA European Championship takes centre stage this summer, with 24 nations battling to win the coveted trophy.

As opposed to being hosted in one country, several nations will host twelve cities across 12 different countries from 11th June to 11th July 2021.

The opening group phase features six groups of four teams, with the top two teams progressing to the knockout stage.

The four best third-place finishers can also qualify for the final 16, with all the subsequent knockout rounds as one-off matches.

The Stadio Olimpico in Rome will host the opening game between Italy and Turkey. At the same time, the semi-finals and final will be at Wembley Stadium in London.

Previous Euro Tournaments

France staged the first European Championship tournament back in 1960. The Soviet Union claimed the trophy after a narrow 2-1 victory over Yugoslavia in the final.

The Euros grew in popularity during the following decade, that the number of nations qualifying for the tournament increasing. However, the first five tournaments still only had four teams participating. It was not until Italy in 1980 that the number of participants doubled.

France 1984 saw a format change, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals rather than just the group winners going straight to the final.

England hosted Euro 1996, which on increasing the tournament size to 16 teams. The hosts suffered significant heartbreak in the semi-finals, losing out on penalties to eventual winners Germany.

The 2000 tournament also a first, being staged in two countries, with Belgium and the Netherlands performing as hosts.

Greece were the underdog winners in 2004, whilst Spain's golden generation of players dominated the next two tournaments, winning them both in 2008 and 2012.

Euro 2016 was the first to figure 24 teams. Portugal eventually claimed the trophy after beating hosts France in the final, avenging their own host heartbreak in 2004.

Previous Euro Winners

Spain and Germany together have won the tournament the most times (3), with France hot on their heels with two tournament victories.

• 1960 - Soviet Union
• 1964 - Spain
• 1968 - Italy
• 1972 - West Germany
• 1976 - Czechoslovakia
• 1984 - France
• 1988 - Netherlands
• 1992 - Denmark
• 1996 - Germany
• 2000 - France
• 2004 - Greece
• 2008 - Spain
• 2012 - Spain
• 2016 - Portugal
• 2020 - ?

Euro 2020 Teams & Groups

24 teams will make up Euro 2020 separated into six groups of four, as per below:

Group A

• Italy
• Switzerland
• Turkey
• Wales

Group B

• Belgium
• Denmark
• Finland
• Russia

Group C

• Austria
• Netherlands
• North Macedonia
• Ukraine

Group D

• Croatia
• Czech Republic
• England
• Scotland

Group E

• Poland
• Slovakia
• Spain
• Sweden

Group F

• France
• Germany
• Hungary
• Portugal

Euro 2020 (2021) Host Countries

The 12 host nations for Euro 2020 (2021) are at the time of writing:

• England
• Germany
• Italy
• Azerbaijan
• Russia
• Romania
• Netherlands
• Ireland
• Spain
• Hungary
• Scotland
• Denmark

*It should be noted that UEFA plans to keep the same host cities; however, should government COVID-19 pandemic restrictions intervene, some host cities could be subject to change.

This is the same for the 12 Euro 2020 (2021) stadiums listed below.

Euro 2020 (2021) Stadiums

Provided government restrictions permit the hosting of football matches, then the twelve stadiums that will host games for Euro 2020 (2021) are:

• Wembley Stadium – London (Quarter-final, Semi-finals and Final)
• Allianz Arena – Munich (Quarter-final)
• Stadio Olimpico – Rome (Opening game and Quarter-final)
• Olympic Stadium – Baku (Quarter-final)
• Krestovsky Stadium – Saint Petersburg (Quarter-final)
• Arena Nationala – Bucharest
• Johan Cruyff Arena – Amsterdam
• Aviva Stadium – Dublin
• San Mames – Bilbao
• Puskas Arena – Budapest
• Hampden Park – Glasgow
• Parken Stadium – Copenhagen

Read our full stadium guide here.

Fascinating Euro Facts

• The Euro trophy, called the Henri Delaunay trophy, the first General Secretary of UEFA. Delaunay came up with the idea for the tournament.

• Henri Delaunay Trophy weighs 8 kilograms, and its height is 60 centimetres.

• Antonin Panenka's chipped penalty was the decisive goal as Czechoslovakia beat Germany in the 1976 final. This style of penalty is now known as the 'Panenka'.

• The 1968 semi-final between Italy and the Soviet Union was decided on a coin toss. Penalties were not yet conceived, so determining who would advance to the final came down to the Italy captain's correct call.

• 1968 also saw the only time a final was replayed. Italy and Yugoslavia tie the first match, meaning that they replayed each other two days later, with Italy triumphing.

• Germany's victory over the Czech Republic in 1996 was the first time a golden goal decided a major tournament – Oliver Bierhoff was the scorer.

• Euro 2020 was the highest-scoring tournament. There were 2.74 goals per match, with 20 players scoring at least two goals each. Euro 2020 is widely considered to be one of the best tournaments.

• One of the most debated Euro 2020 (2021) facts will be introducing the video assistant referee (VAR) system.

• Portugal became the first team to win the tournament despite not winning a single game in the group stage in 2016.

• Denmark, winners in 1992, did not even qualify for the tournament. Yugoslavia was the qualified nation until civil war broke out in the country, leading to them withdrawing. Denmark took their space and ended up winning the tournament.

• Three of the last six UEFA Euro finals have proceeded to extra-time – 1996, 2000 and 2016.

• Spain is the only team to retain the trophy. Winning the tournament for the first time in 2008 and successfully defending it in 2012. Spain is also one of the most fancied teams in the Euro 2020 (2021) betting odds.

• Germany holds the record of both scoring and conceding the most goals in the tournament history. They have scored 72 goals and conceded 48 as well.

• Portugal and France are the only countries to lose a European Championship final as hosts in 2004 (Portugal) and 2016 (France).

• Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record for most appearances (21) and is the joint highest goal scorer alongside Michel Platini with nine.

• France's Michel Platini is the only player to score two hat-tricks in the competition.

• Euro 2020 (2021) will feature a whopping 51 matches across 31 days of competition.

• England and Wales have never progressed further than the semi-finals. In contrast, Scotland and Northern Ireland have never reached the knockout stage.

Will Euro 2020 (2021) happen at all? What UEFA says

Uefa state this summer's European 2020 Championship will still occur across the 12 cities mentioned above, despite concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

A decision on whether fans will be allowed into stadiums is delayed until April 2021.

The competition is due to begin in Rome on 11th June, meaning UEFA and host cities do not have long to decide on fans attendance.

UEFA Euro 2020 was postponed in March last year when the coronavirus pandemic escalated.

There had been news reports that Euro 2020 could be staged in one country to reduce travel if COVID-19 restrictions still apply.

Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin said: "I am optimistic that things are highly likely to be very different concerning the virus as we move closer to the tournament.

"It is vital that we give the host cities and governments as much time as we can to formulate an accurate picture of what will be possible come June and July.

"Fans are such a big part of what makes football special. We must allow ourselves the maximum space to allow their return to the stadiums."

UEFA will decide from April 2021. Whatever happens, there will be football and betting opportunities on the participating teams.

Which Euro 2020 teams should you be taking a punt on? Read our odds guide here.