Friday marks the long-awaited start of the 2016 European Football Championship. France will host the tournament that brings together the 24 best European national teams. For the first time in the tournament's history, not 16 but 24 national teams will compete. The most beautiful football battles will delight fans from June 10th to the same day in July. Throughout this month, you will be able to follow the hottest news from France on the EuroFotball.lt portal. Let's start with an overview of groups A and B. A group 1. Albania 2. France 3. Romania 4. Switzerland Schedule: France - Romania (2016-06-10) 22:00 Albania - Switzerland (2016-06-11) 16:00 Romania - Switzerland (2016-06-15) 19:00 France - Albania (2016-06-15) 22:00 Romania - Albania (2016-06-19) 22:00 Switzerland - France (2016-06-19) 22:00 Albania: Coach: Gianni De Biasi (Italian-Albanian) Captain: Lorik Cana ("Nantes") Most capped player: Lorik Cana (92) Top scorer: Erjon Bogdani (18) FIFA ranking: 42 Highest achievement in the European Championship: group stage (2016) Composition: Goalkeepers: Etrit Berisha ("Lazio"), Orges Shehi ("Skenderbeu"), Alban Hoxha (Tirana "Partizani"); Defenders: Lorik Cana ("Nantes"), Ansi Agolli ("Qarabag") Andi Lila ("PAS Giannina"), Mergim Mavraj ("Koln"), Elseid Hysaj ("Napoli"), Arlind Ajeti ("Frosinone"); Naser Aliji ("Basel"), Frederic Veseli ("Lugano"); Midfielders: Odise Roshi ("Rijeka"), Migjen Basha ("Como"), Amir Abrashi ("Freiburg"), Ermir Lenjani ("Nantes"), Burim Kukeli ("Zurich"), Ergys Kace (PAOK), Ledian Memushaj ("Pescara"), Shkelzen Gashi ("Colorado Rapids"), Taulant Xhaka ("Basel"); Forwards: Armando Sadiku ("Vaduz"), Sokol Cikalleshi ("Basaksehir"), Bekim Balaj ("Rijeka"). France Coach: Didier Deschamps (French) Captain: Hugo Lloris ("Tottenham") Most capped player: Lilian Thuram (142) Top scorer: Thierry Henry (51) FIFA ranking: 17 Highest achievement in the European Championship: champions (1984 and 2000) Composition: Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris ("Tottenham Hotspur"), Steve Mandanda ("Marseille"), Benoit Costil ("Rennes"); Defenders: Adil Rami ("Sevilla"), Laurent Koscielny ("Arsenal"), Eliaquim Mangala and Bacary Sagna ("Manchester City"), Samuel Umtiti ("Lyon"), Patrice Evra ("Juventus"), Lucas Digne ("Roma"), Christophe Jallet ("Lyon"); Midfielders: Paul Pogba ("Juventus"), Blaise Matuidi ("Paris Saint-Germain"), Morgan Schneiderlin ("Manchester United"), N'Golo Kante ("Leicester City"), Yohan Cabaye ("Crystal Palace"), Moussa Sissoko ("Newcastle United"); Forwards: Antoine Griezmann ("Atletico"), Dimitri Payet ("West Ham United"), Anthony Martial ("Manchester United"), Kingsley Coman ("Bayern"), Olivier Giroud ("Arsenal"), Andre-Pierre Gignac ("Tigres"). Romania Coach: Anghel Iordanescu (Romanian) Captain: Vlad Chiriches ("Napoli") Most capped player: Dorinel Munteanu (134) Top scorer: Gheorghe Hagi, Adrian Mutu (35) FIFA ranking: 22 Highest achievement in the European Championship: quarterfinals (2000) Composition: Goalkeepers: Ciprian Tatarusanu ("Fiorentina"), Costel Pantilimon ("Watford"), Silviu Lung Jr. ("Astra Giurgiu"); Defenders: Razvan Rat ("Rayo Vallecano"), Vlad Chiriches ("Napoli"), Dragos Grigore ("Al-Sailiya"), Alexandru Matel (Zagreb "Dinamo"), Valerica Gaman ("Astra Giurgiu"), Cristian Sapunaru ("Pandurii Targu Jiu"), Cosmin Moti ("Ludogorets"), Steliano Filip (Bucharest "Dinamo"); Midfielders: Gabriel Torje ("Osmanlıspor"), Nicolae Stanciu, Adrian Popa, Alexandru Chipciu, Mihai Pintilii ("Steaua"), Ovidiu Hoban ("Hapoel Be'er Sheva"), Lucian Sanmartean ("Al-Ittihad"), Andrei Prepelita ("Ludogorets"); Forwards: Bogdan Stancu ("Genclerbirligi"), Claudiu Keseru ("Ludogorets"), Florin Andone ("Cordoba"), Denis Alibec ("Astra Giurgiu"). Switzerland Coach: Vladimir Petkovic (Croatian-Bosnian) Captain: Stephan Lichtsteiner ("Juventus") Most capped player: Heinz Hermann (118) Top scorer: Alexander Frei (42) FIFA ranking: 15 Highest achievement in the European Championship: group stage (1996, 2004, 2008) Composition: Goalkeepers: Roman Burki (Dortmund "Borussia"), Marwin Hitz ("Augsburg"), Yann Sommer (Monchengladbach "Borussia"); Defenders: Johan Djourou ("Hamburg"), Nico Elvedi (Monchengladbach "Borussia"), Michael Lang ("Basel"), Stephan Lichtsteiner ("Juventus"), Francois Moubandje ("Toulouse"), Ricardo Rodriguez ("Wolfsburg"), Fabian Schar ("Hoffenheim"), Steve von Bergen ("Young Boys"); Midfielders: Valon Behrami ("Watford"), Blerim Dzemaili ("Genoa"), Gelson Fernandes ("Rennes"), Fabian Frei ("Mainz"), Xherdan Shaqiri ("Stoke City"), Shani Tarashaj ("Grasshoppers"), Granit Xhaka (Monchengladbach "Borussia"), Denis Zakaria ("Young Boys"); Forwards: Eren Derdiyok ("Kasimpasa"), Breel Embolo ("Basel"), Admir Mehmedi ("Bayer"), Haris Seferovic ("Eintracht"). B group 1. England 2. Russia 3. Slovakia 4. Wales Schedule: Wales - Slovakia (2016-06-11) 19:00 England - Russia (2016-06-11) 22:00 Russia - Slovakia (2016-06-15) 16:00 England - Wales (2016-06-16) 16:00 Russia - Wales (2016-06-20) 22:00 Slovakia - England (2016-06-20) 22:00 England Coach: Roy Hodgson (English) Captain: Wayne Rooney ("Manchester United") Most capped player: Peter Shilton (125) Top scorer: Wayne Rooney (52) FIFA ranking: 11 Highest achievement in the European Championship: third place (1968), semifinals (1996) Composition: Goalkeepers: Joe Hart ("Manchester City"), Fraser Forster ("Southampton"), Tom Heaton ("Burnley"); Defenders: Ryan Bertrand ("Southampton"), Nathaniel Clyne ("Liverpool"), Danny Rose, Kyle Walker ("Tottenham Hotspur"), Chris Smalling ("Manchester United"), John Stones ("Everton"), Gary Cahill ("Chelsea"); Midfielders: Dele Alli, Eric Dier ("Tottenham Hotspur"), Ross Barkley ("Everton"), Raheem Sterling ("Manchester City"), Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, James Milner ("Liverpool"), Jack Wilshere ("Arsenal"); Forwards: Harry Kane ("Tottenham Hotspur"), Marcus Rashford, Wayne Rooney ("Manchester United"), Daniel Sturridge ("Liverpool"), Jamie Vardy ("Leicester City"). Russia Coach: Leonid Slutsky (Russian) Captain: Roman Shirokov (Moscow CSKA) Most capped player: Sergei Ignashevich (117) Top scorer: Alexander Kerzhakov (30) FIFA ranking: 29 Highest achievement in the European Championship: champions (1960) Composition: Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA), Guilherme ("Lokomotiv"), Yuri Lodygin ("Zenit"); Defenders: Aleksei Berezutsky, Vasily Berezutsky, Sergei Ignashevich, Georgy Schennikov (CSKA), Dmitri Kombarov ("Spartak"), Roman Neustadter ("Schalke"), Roman Shishkin ("Lokomotiv"), Igor Smolnikov ("Zenit"); Midfielders: Alan Dzagoev, Pavel Mamaev ("Krasnodar"), Aleksandr Samdov, Artur Yusupov, Oleg Shatov ("Zenit"); Forwards: Artem Dzyuba ("Zenit"), Aleksandr Kokorin ("Zenit"), Fedor Smolov ("Krasnodar"). Slovakia Coach: Jan Kozak (Slovak) Captain: Martin Skrtel ("Liverpool") Most capped player: Miroslav Karhan (107) Top scorer: Robert Vittek (23) FIFA ranking: 24 Highest achievement in the European Championship: group stage (2016) Composition: Goalkeepers: Jan Mucha ("Slovan"), Matús Kozácik (Plzen "Viktoria"), Jan Novota (Vienna "Rapid"); Defenders: Martin Skrtel ("Liverpool"), Jan Durica (Moscow "Lokomotiv"), Peter Pekarik ("Hertha"), Tomas Hubocan (Moscow "Dynamo"), Kornel Salata ("Slovan"), Dusan Svento ("Cologne"), Norbert Gyoember ("Rome"), Milan Skriniar ("Sampdoria"); Midfielders: Marek Hamsik ("Napoli"), Stanislav Lobotka ("Ferencvaros"), Miroslav Stoch ("Bursaspor"), Vladimir Weiss ("Al-Gharafa"), Juraj Kucka ("Milan"), Viktor Pecovsky ("Zilina"), Robert Mak ("PAOK"), Ondrej Duda (Warsaw "Legia"), Patrik Hrusovsky (Pilzen "Viktoria"), Jan Gregus ("Baumit Jablonec"); Forwards: Michal Duris (Pilsen "Viktoria"), Adam Nemec ("Willem II"). Wales Coach: Chris Coleman (Welsh) Captain: Ashley Williams ("Swansea City") Most capped player: Neville Southall (92) Top scorer: Ian Rush (28) FIFA ranking: 26 Highest achievement in the European Championship: group stage (2016) Composition: Goalkeepers: Wayne Hennessey ("Crystal Palace"), Owain Fon Williams ("Inverness Caledonian Thistle"), Danny Ward ("Liverpool"); Defenders: Chris Gunter ("Reading"), Ashley Williams, Neil Taylor ("Swansea City"), James Collins ("West Ham United"), Ben Davies ("Tottenham Hotspur"), James Chester ("West Bromwich Albion"), Jazz Richards ("Fulham"); Midfielders: Joe Ledley ("Crystal Palace"), David Vaughan ("Nottingham Forest"), Aaron Ramsey ("Arsenal"), Andy King ("Leicester City"), David Edwards ("Wolverhampton Wanderers"), Joe Allen ("Liverpool"), Jonathan Williams ("Milton Keynes Dons"); Forwards: Sam Vokes ("Burnley"), Simon Church ("Aberdeen"), Hal Robson-Kanu ("Reading"), Gareth Bale ("Real Madrid").
