UEFA Euro 2020 Predictions

The biggest international soccer tournament in Europe is finally set to be played a year later than anticipated

by Brendan Smith, Sports O'Clock Writing Team Member

The European Championship trophy (photo credits: Paolo Bruno/Getty Images)

The 2020 UEFA European Championship tournament is finally ready to be played… in 2021.

Originally scheduled to be played from June 12 to July 12 across 12 host cities, the tournament was postponed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will now take place from June 11 to July 11, 2021. This is the first European championship to be played in more than two countries – a celebration of the 60th birthday of the tournament.

Due to the pandemic, the four playoff matches to decide the last group stage participants were also postponed. However, they were finally able to be played this week, with Scotland, Slovakia, Hungary, and North Macedonia winning the one-off matches and taking the last four group stage slots.

Now that the field is set, I will make my predictions for who will ultimately advance out of the group stage and into the knockout rounds. Each nation may experience change over the next several months, but I can still look into my crystal ball and make an educated guess on how the first stage of the tournament will play out.

Group Stage Rules:

- 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss

- First and second place teams qualify for the knockout stage

- Four best third-place teams qualify for the knockout stage

- Goal differential is used as the tiebreaker for teams with identical point totals

Group A: Turkey, Italy, Wales, Switzerland

Italy should be able to win this group. They have improved significantly since the embarrassment of not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. Switzerland are perennial knockout stage participants and should qualify this year as well. Wales and Turkey both have some quality, but they will most likely be fighting for one of the third-place spots. In the end, Wales should get the third-place spot if their two biggest stars – Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey – are healthy and play well.

Group B: Denmark, Finland, Belgium, Russia

On paper, Belgium are the obvious group winners. They may be the most talented nation in the entire tournament, and that talent will carry them in a relatively easy group. Denmark will get the second-place spot; they are not as talented as Belgium, but they have a reliable defense led by goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, and the combination of forward Yussuf Poulsen and midfielder Christian Eriksen will produce several goals. Russia shocked the world by making it to the quarterfinals of the 2018 World Cup, but they will struggle to finish any higher than third. Finland will probably finish in last, but do not be surprised if they become one of the surprise teams to steal one of the third-place spots.

Group C: Netherlands, Ukraine, Austria, North Macedonia

Even though the Netherlands have struggled in recent matches under new manager Frank De Boer, they will be the overwhelming favorites in this group. However, the rest of the group is wide open. Austria and Ukraine have not had much success at recent international tournaments, while North Macedonia will be playing in their first major international tournament. My guess is Ukraine will qualify for the knockout stage, but Austria will give them a run for their money.

Group D: England, Croatia, Scotland, Czech Republic

This is the easiest group to predict: England and Croatia will advance to the knockout stage. The order in which they advance remains to be seen, but the talent England and Croatia possess relative to the rest of the group is unmatched. Both Scotland and the Czech Republic could be good enough to advance as a third-place team, but I ultimately expect Scotland to advance.

Group E: Spain, Sweden, Poland, Slovakia

Spain should win this group, but Poland could challenge them if they actually show up to a tournament for once. Poland were a ranked team in the 2018 World Cup but ended up finishing last in their group; they need to perform much better to have a chance at qualifying for the knockout stage. Sweden could finish second if Poland slips up, but I expect them to qualify as a third-place team. Slovakia will finish at the bottom of the group.

Group F: Portugal, France, Germany, Hungary

Group F is the “Group of Death”. It is so competitive that I cannot decide who I think will win the group out of Portugal, France, and Germany. Ultimately, I expect all three of them to qualify for the knockout stage, but the order in which they qualify remains to be seen. Hungary are in big trouble and have little to no chance of qualifying. They will almost certainly be an upset team.

My Official Predictions

Group A

1. Italy

2. Switzerland

3. Wales

4. Turkey

Group B

1. Belgium

2. Denmark

3. Russia

4. Finland

Group C

1. Netherlands

2. Ukraine

3. Austria

4. North Macedonia

Group D

1. England

2. Croatia

3. Scotland

4. Czech Republic

Group E

1. Spain

2. Poland

3. Sweden

4. Slovakia

Group F

1. France

2. Germany

3. Portugal

4. Hungary

Ranking of Third-Place Teams

1. Portugal

2. Sweden

3. Wales

4. Scotland

5. Russia

6. Austria

(All photos are cited properly. No copyright infringement intended.)