Can Gareth Southgate finally bring football home? (Photo: Getty)
The draw for Euro 2024 is complete and things are looking up for England after they placed in a very favourable group.
The Three Lions will take on Denmark, Serbia and Slovenia in Group C next summer, and this draw has made Gareth Southgate’s side the new tournament favourites ahead of France.
Of course, no major tournament is easy, success is far from guaranteed and a lot can change from now to the opening game between Germany and Scotland on 14th June.
So, what are the different paths England could go down on their way to the final in Berlin? Metro Sport takes a look:
As group winners:
If all goes to plan, England will ease through as group winners which will set up a round-of-16 tie against one of the third-placed sides from Group D, E or F.
This is where things get complicated as we won’t actually know every team in these groups until the play-offs in March.
For the sake of ease we’ll base all results off the current world rankings, meaning that Southgate’s team will likely start the knockout stage against eitherAustria, Romania or Turkey.
Spain have won the Euros three times, most recently in 2012 (Photo: Getty)
Victory over any of them will be expected but after that things get tricky as Italy – the team who beat England on penalties in the Euro 2020 final – would await in the quarter-finals.
Having beaten them twice in the qualifiers, revenge on the Azzurri is more than possible, which in turn would lead to a semi-final against France – the side that knocked England out of the 2022 World Cup.
Another dish of revenge later and a final against Spain would await.
As group runners-up:
As the 2018 World Cup proved, finishing second can be helpful, but on this occasion it certainly would not be as hosts and arch-rivals Germany would be on the cards for the round-of-16.
Even with their struggling form, Die Mannschaft will be the favourites and even if England can upset the odds they’ll face a run of Spain, the Netherlands and France in the final.
Can Kylian Mbappe lead France to glory in Germany (Photo: Getty)
There is an interesting scenario here, as the Group C runners-up take on the Group A winners, which means there is a chance England could take on Scotland in the round-of-16.
But – on paper at least -it would be much, much easier for England to top their group.
As one of the four best third-place teams:
God forbid it comes to this, but the four best performing teams that finish third in their groups make it to the knockouts, though the process of determining them and who they face in the round-of-16 is very complex.
If it happens, England will get either the winner of Group E or F, likely to be Belgium or Portugal.
Euro 2024 winner odds:
England – 7/2
France – 4/1
Germany – 6/1
Spain – 7/1
Portugal – 8/1
Italy – 14/1
Belgium – 14/1
Netherlands – 16/1
Denmark – 25/1
Croatia – 40/1
Switzerland – 40/1
Odds courtesy of Betfair
If it’s the former, the remainder of the tournament should be France, Italy and Spain.
If it’s the latter, expect Netherlands, Spain and France.
More: Trending
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.