UEFA full form, Euro 2020 rules and other FAQs by new football fans

UEFA's European Championship kicks off this weekend as 24 nations will battle it out for continental supremacy. The tournament will be played for the duration of one month, with the final set for July 11 in Wembley. Ahead of the competition kick-off, here's a look at Euro 2020 rules, UEFA Euro 2020 groups, format and some general FAQs for new football fans. 

UEFA full form: What is UEFA?

The UEFA full form is The Union of European Football Associations. UEFA is one of the six continental confederations of world football's governing body FIFA and consists of 55 members. It represents the national football associations of Europe, runs nation and club competitions and controls the prize money, regulations, and media rights to those competitions. The competitions hosted by UEFA include the UEFA European Championship, UEFA Nations League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League, and UEFA Super Cup. 

Euro 2020 rules: Euro 2020 format 

The UEFA Euro 2020 format sees the event being held across the continent for the first time in the competition's 60-year history, with 11 host cities in all. The 55 teams were split into ten groups of five or six with four of the five groups containing one team that has qualified for the UEFA Nations League Finals. The top two from each group will qualify for the final tournament, determining the first 20 places. 

The last four Euro places will be won through the European Qualifiers play-offs, which will be contested by the 16 UEFA Nations League group winners making it 24 participants for the main event. The 24 teams are split into six groups, with the top two from each group qualifying for the round of 16. A win counts for three points, while a draw results in just a solitary point shared between both teams. Four of the best third-placed teams will also qualify for the knockouts. 

UEFA Euro 2020 groups

• Group A: Turkey, Italy, Wales, Switzerland
• Group B: Denmark, Finland, Belgium, Russia
• Group C: Netherlands, Ukraine, Austria, North Macedonia
• Group D: England, Croatia, Scotland, Czech Republic
• Group E: Spain, Sweden, Poland, Slovakia
• Group F: Hungary, Portugal, France, Germany

Best time at Euro 2020: Where to watch Euro 2020 live?

The Sony Sports Network are the official broadcasters of the UEFA Euro 2020 in India. The telecast of the same will be available on SONY TEN 2 and SONY TEN 3 (in Hindi) channels from June 11, 2021 to July 12, 2021. The live stream of the games will also be available on the Sony LIV app. 

(Image Courtesy: Euro 2020 Twitter)