Holder Spain Starts Euro 2016 Campaign Against Czechs

Group B: England, Russia, Wales, Slovakia.

Group E: Belgium, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Sweden.

World champions Germany are to meet Ukraine, Poland and Northern Ireland in Group C. The tournament to kick off in Paris on June 10, 2016.

Defending champions Spain, bidding for their third successive European title, were drawn on Saturday in the same group as Czech Republic, Turkey and Croatia for next year’s Euro 2016 finals.

Delegates were met by tight security at the Palais des Congress but one man notable by his absence was UEFA president Michel Platini, architect of the biggest-ever expanded 24-team finals that will run from June 10 to July 10.

Paired with Switzerland, Romania and Albania, Les Bleus should like their chances of winning Group A. France and Romania will meet in the Euro 2016 opener at the Stade de France in Paris. Then, UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino took over, explaining the draw. It faces debutant Northern Ireland in the opening game, but has one key difference to the team that lost 3-2 in Northern Ireland in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers: Robert Lewandowski, who scored 13 out of Poland’s 33 goals in qualifying and is now tearing it up in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich. “So to be in that top pool and avoid five other very strong teams is obviously a very big advantage”.

Roy Hodgson’s England start against Russian Federation in Marseille on June 11.

Ireland coach Martin O’Neill often bemoans the luck of the draw for his team after a succession of tricky qualifying groups.

In September, with Bayern Munich’s David Alaba playing in a more attacking midfield role, Austria won 4-1 away to Sweden in a performance full of speed and menace.

Portugal will have to get past a risky Austria team, which went undefeated in their qualifying campaign, but overall, Group F looks relatively straight-forward for Cristiano Ronaldo and his team-mates.

Karim Benzema, a striker who plays for Real Madrid, was suspended indefinitely by the French soccer federation after being charged with conspiracy to blackmail relating to an extortion scam over a sex tape involving teammate Mathieu Valbuena.