Euro 2016 Thread

[TBM]

Draw for the qualifying groups is today at 11

I really want us to get Gibraltar

[Sutekh]

Crap sky coverage. Usual overblown long winded farce, just not quite as overblown, long winded or farcical as the WC draw - week of football

England in group E with

San Marino
Lithuania
Estonia
Slovenia
Switzerland

Which, by my reckoning is at least 8 pointless games. If England fail to reach the finals from that lot then they shouldn't bother playing football at all.....

Gibraltar drawn initially in group C with Spain but moved to group D with Germany

Top 2 qualify from 9 groups plus 6 winners of play offs (best 3rd places) to make up the numbers to 24. France included in group but their games aren't played for points.

[parky]

So France go into Portugal's group?

[Silver Fox]

LOLz @ blaming sky for the coverage

Such a bloated tournament they might as well just put the seeded teams straight through, at least there's half a chance Scotland might qualify though.

Seems a bit harsh that the teams in group I also have to play France, surely that will hamper their chances of being the best third place team?

[parky]

Games against France wont count towards anything, best third place team counts against games played in the group apart from the team that finished bottom to even out with the group with one less team.

[Kitsondinho]

Crap sky coverage. Usual overblown long winded farce, just not quite as overblown, long winded or farcical as the WC draw - week of football

England in group E with

San Marino
Lithuania
Estonia
Slovenia
Switzerland

Which, by my reckoning is at least 8 pointless games. If England fail to reach the finals from that lot then they shouldn't bother playing football at all.....

Gibraltar drawn initially in group C with Spain but moved to group D with Germany

Top 2 qualify from 9 groups plus 6 winners of play offs (best 3rd places) to make up the numbers to 24. France included in group but their games aren't played for points.

You mean one 3rd place team (with the best record), France as hosts and 4 play-off winners!

[Sutekh]

Crap sky coverage. Usual overblown long winded farce, just not quite as overblown, long winded or farcical as the WC draw - week of football

England in group E with

San Marino
Lithuania
Estonia
Slovenia
Switzerland

Which, by my reckoning is at least 8 pointless games. If England fail to reach the finals from that lot then they shouldn't bother playing football at all.....

Gibraltar drawn initially in group C with Spain but moved to group D with Germany

Top 2 qualify from 9 groups plus 6 winners of play offs (best 3rd places) to make up the numbers to 24. France included in group but their games aren't played for points.

You mean one 3rd place team (with the best record), France as hosts and 4 play-off winners!

Yes sorry, France in a group got me confused!

[Stuka]

Pretty much as boring a group as England could get. Two Baltic teams? For Christ's sake.

Group D looks fun though.

[Royal Ginger]

A: Netherlands, Czech Republic
B: Belgium, Bosnia
C: Spain, Ukraine(assuming Ukraine still exists as a country by then)
D: Germany, Poland
E: Switzerland, England
F: Greece, Romania
G: Sweden, Russia
H: Italy, Croatia
I: Portugal, Denmark

That's my predictions for qualification.

It's pretty easy to see where it's all going. Poland and Ireland being probably the most contentious place, there's an outside chance of Montenegro or Austria slipping in if Sweden implode like they often do and Serbia could upset Denmark.

[Starfish]

Based purely on how easy / difficult it will be to get to away games, I suppose I should be happy Ireland got Germany (living in Germany and etc.). But Germany so outclassed us in the two games in qualification for Brazil that I have to admit I am a bit depressed by that draw.

[tmesis]

Pretty much as boring a group as England could get. Two Baltic teams? For Christ's sake.

Group D looks fun though.

Play Lithuania and Estonia away as a double-header over an international weekend, and that would be a decent away trip. Tallinn in particular is a cracking little city.

[stealthpapes]

Wouldn't that be first England games away to Lithuania and Slovenia?

[No Fixed Abode]

Couldn't help thinking out much our FA paid to send representatives over for a jolly and be present at the draw. Probably run into tens of thousands of £s. Would be great if they didn't bother going - and put the money they would have spent back into kids grass routes football. Do they really need to be there - what would happen if they didn't bother going?

[Silver Fox]

I believe the whole point if being there is that once the draw is over representatives from each country sit down and work out the fixtures, so I guess if you don't turn up you play all your away games JB a row or something, not that this should make any difference to EngLOLand in this super diluted competition

[No Fixed Abode]

I believe the whole point if being there is that once the draw is over representatives from each country sit down and work out the fixtures, so I guess if you don't turn up you play all your away games JB a row or something, not that this should make any difference to EngLOLand in this super diluted competition

In this day and age - could the fixtures not be arranged by video conference? Would save on expensive hotels, flights, expensive meals etc.

[floyd__streete]

In this day and age - could the fixtures not be arranged by video conference? Would save on expensive hotels, flights, expensive meals etc.

IN for this. Get Johnson from Peep Show to chair proceedings.

EuROFlo 2016 - haven't UEFA learned from the mess which was the group stages of World Cups 1982-1994 when 24 teams had to filter into 16 for the second round so you had groups like England's in Italia '90 where 3 draws got you through. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.....

[Big Foot]

Pretty much as boring a group as England could get. Two Baltic teams? For Christ's sake.

Group D looks fun though.

Estonia away, via St Petersburg. Booked.

[Stuka]

Yeah in fairness I would love to go to Estonia. Everybody I know who's been said it was gr8.

[Big Foot]

Yeah in fairness I would love to go to Estonia. Everybody I know who's been said it was gr8.

Been to Tallinn before - awesome city.

[tmesis]

Wouldn't that be first England games away to Lithuania and Slovenia?

blimey, I had no idea they'd already arranged the dates for all the games. I thought they went away and worked it out between themselves afterwards.