Euro 2020 begins on Friday night with Italy facing Turkey in Rome. It will herald the start of a busy 14-day period of games where all six of the groups will be decided and the teams that make it through to the Round of 16 will be known. With the top two teams in each group, along with four of the third placed teams in the groups with the best record, there is a good chance for any team to progress into the knockout phase. However, predicting who that will be can be tricky. In this article, we are going to take a look at each of the six groups and give you our predictions for which teams we think will win the group, complete with their odds with bet365 Sport at the time of writing. We will also give you the names of the other teams that qualify from that group, together with their bet365 odds on qualifying for the knockout phase. Having already looked at some good outright winner bets on the tournament earlier in the week, let’s now shift our focus to the group stages and take a look at who to back to win the group and who to back as qualifiers for the knockout phase. READ: 2022 Women Euro Preview

Group A

• Italy
• Turkey
• Wales
• Switzerland

Match Venues – Rome (Italy) & Baku (Azerbaijan) For the last few tournaments, these types of fixtures would have been hugely problematic for Italy as they were not the team that they once were. However, under Roberto Mancini, they have discovered their best form and are defensively rock solid once again. Add to that the fact they play all three games in Rome and I think they are the team to back here to win all their games and the group at 8/15. As to who else qualifies from this group, I think Switzerland will win one and draw one of their other two games, whereas I think Turkey will probably draw both games, while Wales will just pick up a single point. If that is the case, Switzerland would qualify in second spot (4/7 to qualify) and based on the records of other third placed teams, Turkey would miss out along with Wales.

Group B

• Belgium
• Denmark
• Finland
• Russia

Match Venues – Saint Petersburg (Russia) & Copenhagen (Denmark) Denmark and Russia seem to have the advantage in this group, with the Danes playing three games at home and the Russians two, however I still feel that Belgium are the team to back here (8/11) to win the group as not only do they have the most talented group of players out of the four teams, but they also have a good recent record, home and away against Denmark and Russia. I can see an underrated Denmark team pushing them hard to finish in second spot in the table and that might even be by goal difference (2/9 to qualify) while I can see Russia (4/9 to qualify) picking up a win at home to Finland which will, I believe, be enough for them to clinch one of the best third place finisher qualifying spots.

Group C

• Austria
• Netherlands
• North Macedonia
• Ukraine

Match Venues – Bucharest (Romania) & Amsterdam (Netherlands) With their three home games in Amsterdam and a relatively benign group in terms of their main opponents, I would expect the Netherlands to win this group (2/5) very comfortably and I think they will likely win all three games. Of the remaining teams, I think Ukraine will probably beat one of Austria or North Macedonia and draw the other game to finish second in the group to qualify (2/7) but I think it could be a struggle for both Austria and North Macedonia as I think they will be well beaten by the Dutch and could well draw their own game which could eliminate both teams.

Group D

• Czech Republic
• Croatia
• England
• Scotland

Match Venues – London (England), Glasgow (Scotland) England and Scotland are the teams with the advantage of home games here. England have all three matches at Wembley, while Scotland have two home games at Hampden to look forward to, as well as that game with England in London. I do expect England to win the group (2/5) but I do think they could draw one of their games, possibly even against Scotland. Scotland chances to progress I feel depend on how they perform against the Czechs in their opening game. If they win that, then they should do enough to progress (6/5 to qualify). I think Croatia will also land a qualifying spot (3/10) and it will be the Czech Republic that finish bottom of the group this time.

Group E

• Poland
• Slovakia
• Spain
• Sweden

Match Venues – Seville (Spain) & Saint Petersburg (Russia) For me, there is no doubt that Spain (1/3) will win this group. They are the strongest team in the four teams and play all three of their games in Seville, a ground where they have an excellent record against all kinds of opponents. The race for the other qualification spots could be intense but I think the extra firepower Poland have over the other two teams may be enough for them to grab second place in the group (2/5 to qualify). Sweden (4/9 to qualify) are also perennial qualifiers for the latter stages and I am backing them to pip Slovakia to third place and land a spot in the Round of 16.

Group F

• France
• Germany
• Hungary
• Portugal

Match Venues – Munich (Germany) & Budapest (Hungary) This is without doubt the most competitive group and the toughest to call. Germany play all three of their games at home, which gives them a big advantage, but to confound things, Hungary also play two games at home. That makes this tough for France and Portugal especially although I do feel France will still win the group (11/8) with Germany finishing second (1/12 to qualify) perhaps on goal difference. I also feel Portugal will do enough to qualify in third (2/7) while Hungary may finish the group stage without a point. Who do you think will make it through each of the groups at Euro 2020? Tune in from Friday to see all the action unfold.

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