Euro 2024 LIVE: Latest news and updates ahead of the tournament

Euro 2024 is upon us, as Germany hosts its first major men’s tournament since 2006 – with the national team seeking its first trophy in a decade.

Some fancy Julian Nagelsmann’s team to defy expectations on home soil, while there is naturally significant faith in France, as the 2018 world champions and 2022 runners-up.

Can England finally get over the line under Gareth Southgate, three years after losing the delayed Euro 2020 final to Italy at Wembley? And if so, will Harry Kane claim his second international Golden Boot?

Or will a younger star steal the spotlight, as clubs and coaches around Europe keep an eye out for the ‘next big thing’ in the summer transfer market?

Below, we predict the teams, players and moments that could define Euro 2024. Without further ado…

Bradley registered his first senior brace with goals in the 16th and 23rd minutes, but Michael O’Neill’s men could not add to that lead despite clear chances for Callum Marshall and Jamal Lewis before half-time.

As expected, Northern Ireland bossed possession but the extra goals O’Neill would no doubt have hoped to see his men conjure against opposition ranked 91 places below them did not materialise after the break.

As another packed season of club football comes to an end, the European Championship in Germany is fast approaching.

The summer tournament bookends a busy 2023/24 season and one that has seen repeated calls for action regarding fixture congestion and player welfare.

So it is no surprise that several important players are set to miss Euro 2024 through injury, with many others battling to be fit in time for the opening round of group games, which begins on 14 June.

Gareth Southgate has been dealing with fitness issues and absentees in the build-up to this summer’s tournament.

But all 26 players trained on Tuesday as England went through their paces for the first time since arriving in Germany the previous night.

Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann condemned a “racist” survey published by a public broadcaster that asked participants if they would prefer more white players in the national team.

The source of initial disillusionment was naturally a decade of precipitous decline, after the cathartic lassoing of der vierte Stern in 2014 – “the fourth star” on Germany’s jersey, woven after their World Cup triumph in Brazil.

The midfielder took part in a traditional folk dance called a “schuhplattler” as the players arrived in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Steve Clarke’s squad checked into the team hotel before heading off to a local hall, where they met mayor Elisabeth Koch and a typical German band.

Euro 2024 takes place in Germany with a total of 51 matches hosted in 10 cities over 31 days as the continental champions are decided.

Here, the PA news agency looks at each of the tournament venues.

Völlig losgelöst von der Erde / Schwebt das Raumschiff, völlig schwerelos.

Completely isolated from Earth / The spaceship floats, totally weightless.

So goes the hook of “Major Tom”, the 1980s hit by German popstar Peter Schilling. And if you haven’t heard it yet, you soon will, because as Germany prepares to host Euro 2024, “Major Tom” is poised to be the song of the tournament.

For German fans, it has already become an unofficial anthem of sorts, with the song back in vogue like so much from the 1980s. But to explain its third life, a quick retrospective is required on its first and second lives.

If you missed Trent Alexander Arnold’s performance against Bosnia and Herzegovina last week, picture Marco van Basten volleying the skin off a high ball from a tight angle into the far corner; picture Hakim Ziyech swerving a 60-yard pass onto his teammate’s big toe; picture Lionel Messi’s invisible throughball to slice open Netherlands. Alexander-Arnold did all of that in one night.

Even allowing for a little journalistic hyperbole, and noting that he was up against the plucky but toothless Bosnia in a friendly, this felt significant. After years on the fringes of England’s first XI, we saw the effect of Alexander-Arnold as a No 6, an intriguing solution to Gareth Southgate’s conundrum of who to play alongside Declan Rice behind England’s preferred No 10, Jude Bellingham. Reports this week suggest the manager is seriously considering this trio for the first group game, against Serbia on Sunday.