The excitement for Euro 2020 is getting higher with each passing day as Europe’s most coveted tournament will kick start this weekend. Contested by 24 teams, it will be nothing short of an action-packed competition as fans can witness Europe’s best players in action. Here we take a look at the five favourites for the title, sparring the underdogs.
Top Five Favourites
France
The defending World Cup champions will set foot into the competition as one of the favourites, even asserted by former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. Les Bleus look to amend the things for Euro 2016’s debacle, losing to Portugal in the finals. Manager Didier Deschamps will have the luxury of an extraordinary squad filled with superstars like Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema, with the latter returning to the national team after a long hiatus. The bench strength of France can also be argued as the best when compared to the rest.
Portugal
Portugal are the defending European Champions and will look to replicate the similar success they enjoyed in the previous edition. Unlike last time, the current squad boasts high-quality players who can take the entire onus away from Cristiano Ronaldo – who knows; this could be the final Euro tournament for the Juventus star. From defence to attack, the Portuguese squad contains at least one player who can turn the match on his own, say, Ruben Dias, Bruno Fernandes and Joao Felix.
England
England can end their wait for silverware this time around if Gareth Southgate benefits from a well-rounded squad, considered by many as the nation’s best in years. Three Lions showed a glimpse of what they can actually be when they had a productive campaign in World Cup 2018 before falling short in the semi-finals. Southgate will be looking to not repeat the same mistake over the years. Harry Kane, who is coming off an imperious season, will lead the line while the squad also possess a handful of talents – Mason Mount, Jadon Sancho, Phil Foden and so on.
Belgium
Belgium‘s rise to stardom is not like anything you would have seen. Roberto Martinez has turned the Red Devils into a world-class unit, and as a result, they are currently the No.1 side in FIFA rankings. However, silverware still keeps evading from their reach, and Euro 2020 is the best place to show everyone who they really are. Romelu Lukaku is in the form of his life after leading Inter Milan to the first Serie A title in a decade, breaking Juventus’ hegemony in the process. Kevin de Bruyne would be another pillar as the Manchester City playmaker looks to make up for the Champions League failure he suffered recently.
Germany
Germany awaits a humongous task as they are drawn in the same group of France and Portugal. But one can’t simply take the Germans for granted for all their rich story and a set of players who can wreak havoc on opponents. Joachim Low’s side might give you the impression of being a shadow of their former self due to their decline after the disappointing World Cup campaign in 2018 where they couldn’t go beyond the group stage. Low will look to end his run with the German national team on a high note as he had earlier announced his departure after the European Championship. The return of Thomas Muller and Mat Hummels will be a big advantage while young guns like Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Leroy Sane, Joshua Kimmich look to bring the Germans back to their heydays.
Top Teams Ranked
Participating teams are ranked as per Betting odds as well as FIFA-World-Ranking of the national teams.
| Teams | Betting Odds | FIFA Rank |
| France | 5.50 | 2 |
| England | 6.00 | 4 |
| Belgium | 6.50 | 1 |
| Germany | 8.00 | 12 |
| Spain | 9.00 | 6 |
| Portugal | 9.00 | 5 |
| Italy | 9.00 | 7 |
| Netherlands | 15.00 | 16 |
| Denmark | 26.00 | 10 |
| Croatia | 34.00 | 14 |
| Turkey | 51.00 | 29 |
| Ukraine | 51.00 | 24 |
| Russia | 67.00 | 38 |
| Switzerland | 67.00 | 13 |
| Austria | 81.00 | 23 |
| Poland | 81.00 | 21 |
| Sweden | 101.00 | 18 |
| Czech Republic | 151.00 | 40 |
| Wales | 201.00 | 17 |
| Scotland | 201.00 | 44 |
