This Saturday in Russia, the most anticipated summer sports event of the year, the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, will kick off. Eight teams, divided into four groups, will compete for the main tournament trophy until July 2nd. The tournament, dedicated to the preparation for the 2018 World Cup, has attracted six continent champions: New Zealand, Portugal, Mexico, Cameroon, Chile, Australia, Germany, and host Russia. The FIFA Confederations Cup will start on Saturday at 18:00 Lithuanian time with a match between Russia and New Zealand. Both the beginning and the end of the tournament will take place in the recently built Saint Petersburg stadium. The most visited football news portal in the country, "EuroFootball.com," will provide its visitors with the hottest news from Russia throughout the tournament. To start with, an overview of the tournament groups. GROUP A 1. Russia 2. Portugal 3. Mexico 4. New Zealand Undoubtedly, the favorites of the group are considered to be the Portuguese national team players. After triumphing in the European Championship last summer, the Portuguese arrived in Russia with the strongest squad and are determined to fight for another international trophy. They will face competition in the group from the host Russians and Mexicans. The latter will have the most intense competition with the Russians for the second position, which would lead them to the next stage. Russia will feel the pressure from their fans, but extraordinary results are not expected; the squad is composed only of players who participate in matches in their homeland. New Zealand is considered the underdog of the group, but they have come to the tournament to test their strength and will not give up without a fight. Russia Qualified for the tournament as: Hosts Coach: Stanislav Cherchesov (Russian) Captain: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow) Most appearances: Sergei Ignashevich (120) Top scorer: Aleksandr Kerzhakov (30) FIFA ranking: 63 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow), Vladimir Gabulov (Arsenal Tula), Guilherme (Lokomotiv Moscow); Defenders: Georgy Dzhikiya (Spartak Moscow), Fyodor Kudryashov (FC Rostov), Ilya Kutepov (Spartak Moscow), Roman Shishkin (FC Krasnodar), Igor Smolnikov (Zenit St. Petersburg), Viktor Vasin (CSKA Moscow), Dmitry Kombarov (Spartak Moscow); Midfielders: Yuri Gazinsky (FC Krasnodar), Denis Glushakov (Spartak Moscow), Alexander Golovin (CSKA Moscow), Alexei Miranchuk (Lokomotiv Moscow), Alexander Samedov (Spartak Moscow), Dmitry Tarasov (Lokomotiv Moscow), Alexander Yerokhin (FC Rostov), Yuri Zhirkov (Zenit St. Petersburg), Ruslan Kambolov (Rubin Kazan); Forwards: Alexander Bukharov (FC Rostov), Maxim Kannunikov (Rubin Kazan), Dmitry Poloz (FC Rostov), Fyodor Smolov (FC Krasnodar). Portugal Qualified for the tournament as: European champions Coach: Fernando Santos (Portuguese) Captain: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) Most appearances: Cristiano Ronaldo (139) Top scorer: Cristiano Ronaldo (73) FIFA ranking: 8 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (Sporting), Beto (Sporting), Jose Sa (Porto); Defenders: Nelson Semedo (Benfica), Cedric Soares (Southampton), Pepe (Real Madrid), Bruno Alves (Cagliari), Luis Neto (Zenit), Jose Fonte (Southampton), Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund), Eliseu (Benfica); Midfielders: William Carvalho (Sporting), Danilo (Porto), Joao Moutinho (Monaco), Pizzi (Benfica), Andre Gomes (Barcelona), Adrien Silva (Sporting), Bernardo Silva (Monaco); Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Ricardo Quaresma (Besiktas), Gelson Martins (Sporting), Andre Silva (Porto), Nani (Valencia). Mexico Qualified for the tournament as: North American champions Coach: Juan Carlos Osorio (Colombian) Captain: Rafael Marquez (Atlas) Most appearances: Claudio Suarez (177) Top scorer: Javier Hernandez (47) FIFA ranking: 17 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Guillermo Ochoa (Granada), Alfredo Talavera (Deportivo Toluca), Rodolfo Cota (Chivas Guadalajara); Defenders: Diego Reyes (Espanyol), Nestor Araujo (Santos Laguna), Carlos Salcedo (Fiorentina), Rafael Marquez (Atlas), Hector Moreno (PSV Eindhoven), Luis Reyes (Atlas); Midfielders: Andres Guardado (PSV Eindhoven), Jonathan dos Santos (Villarreal), Hector Herrera (Porto), Oswaldo Alanis (Chivas Guadalajara), Miguel Layun (Porto), Giovani dos Santos (LA Galaxy), Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad), Javier Aquino (Tigres); Forwards: Marco Fabian (Eintracht Frankfurt), Javier Hernandez (Bayer Leverkusen), Raul Jimenez (Benfica), Hirving Lozano (Pachuca), Oribe Peralta (Club America). New Zealand Qualified for the tournament as: Oceania champions Coach: Anthony Hudson (English) Captain: Chris Wood (Leeds United) Most appearances: Ivan Vicelich (88) Top scorer: Vaughan Coveny (28) FIFA ranking: 95 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Stefan Marinovic (Unterhaching), Tamati Williams (Waalwijk), Glen Moss (Newcastle Jets); Defenders: Andrew Durante (Wellington Phoenix), Thomas Doyle (Wellington Phoenix), Storm Roux (Central Coast Mariners), Michael Boxall (SuperSport United), Kip Colvey (San Jose Earthquakes), Themi Tzimopoulos (Giannina), Deklan Wynne (Vancouver Whitecaps), Sam Brotherton (Sunderland), Tommy Smith (Ipswich Town), Dane Ingham (Brisbane Roar); Midfielders: Bill Tuiloma (Marseille), Clayton Lewis (Auckland City), Michael McGlinchey (Wellington Phoenix), Ryan Thomas (PEC Zwolle); Forwards: Chris Wood (Leeds United), Monty Patterson (Ipswich Town), Shane Smeltz (Borneo), Kosta Barbarouses (Wellington Phoenix), Marco Rojas (Melbourne Victory), Alex Rufer (Wellington Phoenix). GROUP B 1. Germany 2. Chile 3. Cameroon 4. Australia In this group, there is no clear favorite for the first position; Germany and Chile national teams are likely to compete for it. Germany could be considered the main favorite for the victory in the group, but Joachim Low has decided to play without experienced players in the Confederations Cup – there will be no players like Toni Kroos, Mesut Ozil, Jerome Boateng, Manuel Neuer, and others in the tournament. Chile has a very solid team, so they will aim not only for the first position in the group but also for the championship title. They will face competition from two other quite powerful teams in the group – Australia and Cameroon. Of course, both teams do not have the same level of famous players as the aforementioned two, so their chances to advance to the next stage are minimal. Germany Qualified for the tournament as: World champions Coach: Joachim Low (German) Captain: Julian Draxler (PSG) Most appearances: Lothar Matthaus (150) Top scorer: Miroslav Klose (71) FIFA ranking: 3 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Bernd Leno (Bayer Leverkusen), Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (Barcelona), Kevin Trapp (PSG); Defenders: Matthias Ginter (Borussia Dortmund), Jonas Hector (Cologne), Benjamin Henrichs (Bayer Leverkusen), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal), Marvin Plattenhardt (Hertha Berlin), Antonio Rudiger (Roma), Niklas Sule (Hoffenheim); Midfielders: Julian Draxler (PSG), Leon Goretzka (Schalke), Kerem Demirbay (Hoffenheim), Lars Stindl (Borussia Monchengladbach), Emre Can (Liverpool), Amin Younes (Ajax), Leroy Sane (Manchester City), Julian Brandt (Bayer Leverkusen), Sebastian Rudy (Hoffenheim); Forwards: Sandro Wagner (Hoffenheim), Timo Werner (Leipzig). Chile Qualified for the tournament as: South American champions Coach: Juan Antonio Pizzi (Argentinian) Captain: Claudio Bravo (Man City) Most appearances: Claudio Bravo (112) Top scorers: Alexis Sanchez, Marcelo Salas (37) FIFA ranking: 4 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Claudio Bravo (Manchester City), Christopher Toselli (Universidad Catolica), Johnny Herrera (Universidad de Chile); Defenders: Eugenio Mena (Sport Recife), Enzo Roco (Cruz Azul), Mauricio Isla (Cagliari), Paulo Diaz (San Lorenzo), Jean Beausejour (Universidad de Chile), Gary Medel (Inter), Gonzalo Jara (Universidad de Chile); Midfielders: Francisco Silva (Cruz Azul), Jose Fuenzalida (Universidad Catolica), Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich), Pablo Hernandez (Celta Vigo), Felipe Gutierrez (Internacional), Charles Aranguiz (Bayer Leverkusen), Marcelo Diaz (Celta Vigo); Forwards: Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal), Angelo Sagal (Huachipato), Eduardo Vargas (Tigres UANL), Martin Rodriguez (Cruz Azul), Leonardo Valencia (Palestino), Edson Punch (Necaxa). Cameroon Qualified for the tournament as: African champions Coach: Hugo Broos (Belgian) Captain: Benjamin Moukandjo (Lorient) Most appearances: Rigobert Song (137) Top scorer: Samuel Eto'o (56) FIFA ranking: 32 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Joseph Ondoa (Sevilla), Georges Bokwe (Mjondalen), Andre Onana (Ajax); Defenders: Ernest Mabouka (MSK Zilina), Adolphe Teikeu (Sochaux), Michael Ngadeu (Slavia Prague), Jerome Guihoata (Panionios), Collins Fai (Standard Liege), Lucien Owona (Alcorcon), Jonathan Ngwem (Sambizanga); Midfielders: Andre Zambo Anguissa (Marseille), Georges Mandjeck (FC Metz), Sebastien Siani (Oostende), Arnaud Djoum (Hearts); Forwards: Nicolas Ngamaleu (Rheindof), Benjamin Moukandjo (Lorient), Jacques Zoua (Kaiserslautern), Vincent Aboubakar (Besiktas), Olivier Boumal (Panathinaikos), Christian Bassogog (Henan Jianye), Robert Tambe Ndip (Spartak Trnava), Karl Toko (Angers). Australia Qualified for the tournament as: Asian champions Coach: Ange Postecoglou (Greek) Captain: Tim Cahill (Melbourne City) Most appearances: Mark Schwarzer (109) Top scorer: Tim Cahill (48) FIFA ranking: 48 Lineup: Goalkeepers: Mathew Ryan (Genk), Mitchell Langerak (Stuttgart), Daniel Vukovic (Sydney FC); Defenders: Milos Degenek (Yokohama F Marinos), Alex Gersbach (Rosenborg), Dylan McGowan (Pacos de Ferreira), Bailey Wright (Bristol City), Aziz Behich (Bursaspor), Ryan McGowan (Guizhou Hengfeng Zhicheng), Trent Sainsbury (Inter Milan); Midfielders: Mark Milligan (Baniyas), Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield), Ajdin Hrustic (Groningen), Massimo Luongo (QPR), Jackson Irvine (Burton Albion), James Jeggo (Sturm Graz); Forwards: Tim Cahill (Melbourne City), Mathew Leckie (FC Ingolstadt), Tomi Juric (Luzern), Robbie Kruse (Liaoning Whowin), Jamie McLaren (Brisbane Roar), James Troisi (Melbourne Victory), Tom Rogic (Celtic). Schedule of group stage matches:
