The UEFA European Under-17 Championship consists of three distinct stages: the qualifying round, the elite round and the final tournament. The format changed for 2014/15 with the expansion of the final tournament from eight to 16 teams.Qualifying roundThe qualifying round, played in autumn, is made up of 13 groups of four countries playing in one-venue mini-tournaments. The top two from each pool progress alongside the five third-placed sides with the best record against the leading pair in their groups.Elite roundIn the elite round, held in early spring, those 31 qualifiers plus the top seed – given a bye this far – compete i...
Football Update
UEFA Europa League final: Liverpool v Sevilla
The 2016 UEFA Europa League final lineup has been decided, with Liverpool taking on holders Sevilla at St. Jakob-Park, Basel on Wednesday 18 May, kicking off at 20.45CET.The finalists and their predigreeLiverpoolPrevious finals• 1973 – W 3-2 v Mönchengladbach, on agg• 1976 – W 4-3 v Club Brugge, on agg• 2001 – W 5-4 v Alavés, aet; Dortmund
Thrilled Bale delighted with Madrid’s stroke of luck
A delighted Gareth Bale confessed there was more than a touch of luck to the goal that took Real Madrid into a second UEFA Champions League final in three seasons, edging Manchester City 1-0 on aggregate.It was Bale's surging run and deflected cross in the first-half, turned into his own net inadvertently by Fernando, that sealed the victory for Madrid. All smiles, Bale candidly admitted there was an ounce of luck about his side's goal."I went to cross, but obviously it doesn't matter however the ball goes in the back of the net," he told UEFA.com. "We're very happy and the most important thing is we're in the final."We're very excited to get to the final. We're going...
Relaxed Klopp tells Liverpool to give it a good go
Substitute Adrián López's late goal won first leg at the last for VillarrealThe Spanish side are on a club record 12-match unbeaten run in EuropeLiverpool have kept just one clean sheet in their last 11 outingsVillarreal, who are 280 minutes without conceding, eyeing a first major European finalThe winner will face Sevilla or Shakhtar in the final in Basel on 18 MayPossible lineupsLiverpool: Mignolet; Clyne, Lovren, Touré, Moreno; Allen, Can, Milner; Lallana, Coutinho; Sturridge.Out: Origi...
Official podcast: Atlético into the final
We hear from Jan Oblak, Cristiano Ronaldo, Zinédine Zidane and Manuel Pellegrini as UEFA Champions League Matchday Live host Rob Daly, European football expert Andy Brassell and match commentator Richard Kaufman review Atlético Madrid's semi-final success against Bayern München and preview Manchester City's trip to Real Madrid in the official podcast. You can listen in the player above or via Soundcloud, or download the podcast from iTunes.UEFA Champions League Matchday Live returns at 19.30CET on Wednesday with live Madrid v City commentary in our MatchCentre and the official competition app. ...
Snap shot: Shakhtar win the 2009 UEFA Cup
Beating domestic rivals Dynamo Kyiv in the semi-finals was not to be the pinnacle of Shakhtar Donetsk's 2008/09 UEFA Cup achievements. With their now customary mix of Brazilian flair and European industry, Shakhtar topped that by overcoming a much-fancied Werder Bremen side 2-1 in the Istanbul final.Bremen's Naldo cancelled out Luiz Adriano's 25th-minute opener, but a Jádson goal in extra time secured the first major European success for a Ukrainian club since independence.1. Luiz AdrianoThe Brazilian's goal against Bremen was his third in that season's UEFA Cup. The forward spent eight years at Shakhtar and eventually left for AC Milan in summer 2015 ...
FIFA Statement on CAS decision concerning Gibraltar
Following the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) concerning Gibraltar, the FIFA Council is expected to discuss the matter at its next meeting on 9 and 10 May 2016 and decide on the next steps, including a potential request to amend the 66th FIFA Congress agenda in order to submit the Gibraltar FA’s application for FIFA membership. ...