European Football Championship kicks off in France: when Russia and Ukraine play

The match between the national teams of France and Romania at the Stade de France in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis kicks off the 15th European Football Championship in history. Just like 4 years ago, the national teams of Russia and Ukraine will take part in it simultaneously.

Ukraine, together with Poland, was the mistress of the previous championship of the continent, but failed to overcome the barrier of the group round, as the Russians. After the collapse of the USSR, the best result of the Russian team is the Euro-2008 semifinal in Austria and Switzerland. Ukrainians, in turn, achieved their loudest success in the World Championships 2006, when the team with Andriy Shevchenko in the attack reached the quarterfinal.

The national teams of Russia and Ukraine will spend their first matches at the European Championships 2016 of France this coming weekend, and their opponents will be the favorites of the groups. The Russians, led by Leonid Slutsky, will play 11 June in Marseille against England, and the Ukrainians, led by Mikhail Fomenko, will meet 12 June in Lille with the current world champion Germany.

Two other Russian team B rivals will be Slovakia and Wales. Ukrainians who are in group C will also play with Poland and Northern Ireland.

Since a total of 24 teams will play in the current tournament for the first time in history, the regulations have also changed. Now, not only the two best teams of each group will advance from the groups to the playoffs, but also the four teams that took 3rd place in their “quartets” with the best performance.

It is noteworthy that the national teams of Russia and Ukraine can meet each other in the 1/8 finals. This could happen if the Russian team becomes first in its group, and Ukraine third.

Unlike the European Cup tournaments among clubs, where representatives of Russia and Ukraine are separated between themselves during the draw due to tense relations between the countries, this rule will not act at the European Championships.

In the US, Euro-2016 matches will be broadcast on ESPN channels.

Schedule matches teams Russia and Ukraine

(time is EDT, Eastern Daylight Saving Time)

June 11, Saturday, 15:00 — Russia - England

June 12, Sunday, 15:00 — Ukraine - Germany

June 15, Wednesday, 9:00 — Russia - Slovakia

June 16, Thursday, 12:00 — Ukraine - Northern Ireland

June 20, Monday, 15:00 — Russia - Wales

June 21, Tuesday, 12:00 — Ukraine Poland

Euro-2016 matches will take on a total of 10 cities in France: Paris, Saint-Denis, Lyon, Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Nice, Saint-Etienne and Lance. The tournament will end on June 10.

The final, like the opening match, will take place in Saint-Denis. Interestingly, the Stade de France stadium, which seats 80 thousand spectators, was built for the 1998 World Cup - the last major football tournament that France had previously hosted.

Last November when terrorists attacked Paris and its environs, it was reported that a terrorist attack was prevented at the Stade de France, where a friendly match between the national teams of France and Germany was taking place. Several explosions were heard near the arena, however enter the stadium suicide bombers failed.

The French authorities announced that they would strengthen security measures as much as possible in the cities hosting the European Football Championship. Places where tourists gather, including stadiums and shopping and entertainment centers, will be under the control of monitoring systems, and in Paris, the “Guardian” plan will be in effect, as part of which additional military forces will arrive in the capital and its environs.

The hosts of the championship, the French national team, are ranked as one of the main favorites of the starting championship. In addition to the wards of Didier Deschamps, according to the bookmakers and experts, the current world champions are Germans and Englishmen, who have high chances of success.

The Spanish national team, which has won two European and one World Championships since 2008, is now experiencing a generational change and, among other things, failed at the World Cup 2014 in Brazil.

The composition of all six groups of Euro-2016:

Group A: France, Switzerland, Romania, Albania

Group B: England, Russia, Slovakia, Wales

Group C: Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Northern Ireland

Group D: Spain, Croatia, Czech Republic, Turkey

Group E: Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Ireland

Group F: Portugal, Austria, Hungary, Iceland

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