History has already been written. Georgian national football team will play in Europe. However, how far will history be rewritten? And will Georgia overcome the group stage?
In the final stage of the European 2024 competition, Georgia finds itself in a dramatic struggle against Greece in the penalty series on the evening of March 26th, during a match held at the Dinamo Arena.
Germany, the third participant in the European Championship, will open the Alliance Arena on June 14th. The final will take place exactly one month later at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.
Georgia plays three group stage matches in three different cities: Dortmund, Hamburg, and Gelsenkirchen.
Participation in the European Championship is taken by 24 teams. There are six groups, each with four teams. The best first and second places automatically advance to the playoffs.
The chance of advancing beyond the group stage after a defeat is also present. The third-place team from six other groups also finds its way to the playoffs. Accordingly, the likelihood is high that just one victory is sufficient to progress from the group stage. Alternatively, winning the game is not necessarily crucial, and a successful draw can also bring three points.
A good example of this occurred in 2016: Portugal's team reached the playoffs precisely in third place, without losing any matches in the group and finishing all three matches drawn. Ultimately, Portugal emerged from the tournament as champions in 2016.
After the disappointment of losing to Spain, Georgia fills a vacant spot in Group F of Euro 2024. Also present in the group are Turkey, Czech Republic, and Portugal. Georgia will play its debut match in the European Championship against none other than neighboring Turkey.
Interactions in mutual meetings give us a lot of information. The official match between Portugal and Georgia has never happened, while Georgia's last official confrontation with Turkey dates back almost 20 years from the last official confrontation.
The favorite in the group is Portugal, whose representation has become even stronger after winning the 2016 championship and is complemented by stars from European clubs. Adding to this is the factor of the world football icon, Cristiano Ronaldo, aged 39, for whom this could be the last major tournament, making his motivation even higher.
Even in the qualifying stage of the European Championship, the printed assumption was left by the Czech Republic. However, the direct passage to the second place is still disputed, although the three matches played by Fred, including a 0-3 loss to Albania, raised doubts.
Since 1996, or after that, when the name of Georgia appears in the tournament, an interesting trend has emerged: every subsequent tournament either advances from the group or does not. They made it in 1996, not in 2000, in 2004 again they did, not in 2008... By this principle, in 2024, Georgia's chances of advancing from the group are uncertain.
As for Turkey, they are one of the least predictable teams in the group. Their leader, Hakan Çalhanoğlu, is in excellent form at the club "Inter," but he is often criticized during national team games. Apart from that, the Turks lost both of their games: 0-1 to Hungary and a whopping 1-6 defeat to Austria.
How they will perform in the foggy weather of European Championship is hard to predict. It should be noted that the Germans consider the large Turkish diaspora in Germany as a significant advantage for Turkey, which may give them an edge in European competition.
From all of this, it can be said that Georgia's advancement from the group stage of the European Championship is not a realistic scenario. As the team's head coach, Willy Sagnol, said, his team does not aim to be tourists in Germany.
The tournament for Georgia starts on June 18 with a match against Turkey. The next encounter for the Georgians is on June 22 against Hungary, and finally, on June 26, they play against Portugal.
You can watch Euro 2024 Matches at our website. Below you can find the links for matches of Georgia:
The 17th European Football Championship will start on June 14 with the game of the host country team, Germany, which will face the national team of Scotland.
The matches will be held in 10 cities in Germany, Berlin, Hamburg, Gelsenkirchen, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Leipzig, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Munich.