Euro 2020: Google gears up for 16th European Championship with impressive Doodle
The 16th edition of the Euro Championship starts Friday (June 11) with Europe's top-flight football teams doing battle for the ultimate crown.
The Uefa Euro Championship 2020 is finally here. Originally scheduled to take place in 2020, the premier football event was postponed to the following here. And after a year of the long wait, it is finally here, and Google warmed up for the event with an impressive Doodle.
The 16th edition of the Euro Championship starts Friday (June 11) with Europe's top-flight football teams doing battle for the ultimate crown.
The championship kicks off with a match between Italy and Turkey at Stadio Olimpico, the largest sports facility in Rome. The match will be played in front of 16,000 spectators.
Originally, Uefa Euro 2020 was scheduled from June 12 to July 12, 2020. However, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the tournament had to be postponed and rescheduled for June 11 to July 11, 2021.
The tournament continues to retain its name Uefa Euro 2020. Euro 2020 will be held in 11 cities in 11 Uefa countries. European Football Championship has been a staple tournament for football fans since 1960.
Of the 11 host countries, seven have qualified for the tournament - Denmark, England, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Russia, and Spain. Hungary and Scotland have made it via playoffs, while Romania and Azerbaijan couldn't qualify.
Finland and North Macedonia will make their European Championship debut this year.
For the first time in history, the tournament will be spread across 12 different cities in Europe with the final and semi-final taking place at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
The Euro 2020 groups will see 24 teams being divided into groups of six with four teams each. The top two teams from all groups and four third-position teams will qualify for the Round of 16.
Winners of the 2016 edition, Portugal are the defending champions.
Also, the video assistant referee (VAR) system will make its debut at the European Championship this year.
A host of former EURO winners are among a star-studded line-up of ambassadors. "We look forward to their involvement in supporting Uefa EURO 2020 – an event that will be much closer to football fans than ever before," said Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin.
