Euro 2024 already has the 24 teams that will compete in Germany from June 14 to July 14. The last three tickets remained to be defined and this Tuesday the matches that completed the last asterisks were played. In the first turn, Georgia made history after eliminating Greece, and will play the competition for the first time since it is an independent country from the former Soviet Union. The most outstanding thing was the celebrations of the Georgians, with a lot of emotion and an invasion of the field, with thousands of people happy for the achievement. Besides, Ukraine, in the midst of the war that is suffering from the invasion of Russia, He had the joy of entering the competition in football. Finally, Poland beat Wales on penalties in Cardiffand became the 24th team to participate in the largest national team tournament on the Old Continent.
The first time
What happened at the Boris Paichadze stadium in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, was truly crazy. The local team made history after beating Greece 4 to 2 on penalties, after drawing 0-0 in the 120 minutes, and For the first time in its history it will go to the Euro Cup. The team led by Frenchman Willy Sagnol could not enter the continental competition in the group stage, but had the chance to access the playoffs. On Thursday they beat Luxembourg 2-0, on the same stage, and now it was Greece’s turn, a team with more experience, and which was also European champion in 2004.
The match was very even and ended 0-0, so the duel continued into overtime. In those 30 minutes no advantage was taken either, and everything was decided on penalties. With the score 3-2 in favor of the locals, Giorgos Giakoumakis had the chance to tie, but his shot went wide. It was Nika Kvekveskiri’s turn, and when the ball entered the goal, it unleashed madness among all the spectators who filled the stadium.
In the celebration after achieving victory, Kvekveskiri ran towards a corner, followed by several of his teammates. When he arrived at the place, many fans They started to get on the playing field. to salute the heroes who had made history. Meanwhile, in the stands people hugged and were moved by an unforgettable moment. In a few minutes, the playing field was invaded by thousands of Georgians to continue celebrating such an achievement. The party continued in the locker room and in the press conference room, with the squad led by Khvicha Kvaratskheliathe talented Napoli footballer and his exclusive figure.
It is worth noting that It will be the first time that the team from the former Soviet Union will play in a senior team tournamenttaking into account that this country has been competing in championships with its national team since 1990. Georgia, which has already entered the Euro 2024, will share group F with Portugal, Czech Republic and Türkiyea team against which he will debut on June 18 in Dortmund.
A joy in the midst of sadness
In March 2022, Ukraine, a team devastated by war, They lost 1-0 to Wales in the final of the playoffs that qualified for Qatar 2022. However, two years later, euphoria replaced anguish and the team led by Sergiy Rebrov, which defeated Iceland 2-1, will be part of group E of Euro 2024. The match played at the Municipal Stadium in Wrocław, a city located in the southwest of Poland, started uphill for the Ukrainians. Albert Gudmundsson made it 1-0 for the Icelanders, a result with which they went to half-time.
But in the second half came the recovery. Viktor Tsygankov equalized after nine minutes and when it seemed that everything was going to end in a draw, one of the gems that Ukraine has appeared. Mykhailo Mudryk, The 23-year-old footballer who plays for Chelsea, converted the 2-1 that was going to be final for him to enter the competition that will be played in Germany and bring joy to a town hit by the war with Russia just over two years ago. In this way, the Ukrainians will share the area with Belgium, Slovakia and Romania, selected against which they will appear on June 17 in Munich.
With the hands of experience
In Cardiff, Wales and Poland tied 0-0 after 90 minutes and overtime, so they had to go to penalties to define the last ticket to the Euro Cup. AND It was the Poles who, after 120 minutes, won 5 to 4 in shots from 12 steps thanks to goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who became a hero in the definition. In regulation, there wasn’t much from either team. Few arrivals and no game. Therefore, it was not surprising that both teams reached the tiebreaker from 11 meters. Robert Lewandowski scored the first and set the course for the white eagles. In the tenth, the last of the regular series, Daniel James had to convert to bring the definition to a penalty for each team. The Leeds player finished crosswise and the experienced goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny guessed the intention to get Poland into the next Euro Cup. With the classification, those led by Michal Probierz entered group D. There they will face France, Austria and the Netherlands, a team against which they will debut on June 16 in Hamburg.
This is how the Euro Cup will be played
The competition will be played in 10 cities in Germany. The competition is divided into six zones of four teams each. Of these, the first, second and also the four best third parties in each zone will qualify for the round of 16. The winners will advance to the quarterfinals and the top four will compete in the semifinals. The winners of that instance will reach the cup final, which will be played on July 14 at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.
This is how the groups of the Euro 2024 were
- Group A: Germany, Scotland, Hungary, Switzerland.
- Group B: Spain, Croatia, Italy, Albania.
- Group C: Slovenia, Denmark, Serbia, England.
- Group D: Poland, Netherlands, Austria, France.
- Group E: Belgium, Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine.
- Group F: Türkiye, Georgia, Portugal, Czech Republic.