Holders Frankfurt need penalties to set up all-German semi-final with WolfsburgLate Paris goal against Barcelona ensures they face Lyon in last fourFranco-German final guaranteed on 26 May in Reggio EmiliaParis and Wolfsburg can still win both men's and women's titlesTournament statsRoad to the final:Semi-finals (23/24 April & 30 April/1 May)1 Lyon v Paris Saint-Germain2 Wolfsburg v FFC Frankfurt (holders)Final (26 May, Stadio Città del Tricolore, Reggio Emilia)
Football Update
Vardy the big plus as Dutch cool England’s boots
England have a new man of the moment in Leicester City's rags-to-riches hero Jamie Vardy. After hitting his first international goal with a brilliantly instinctive backheel in Saturday's 3-2 victory over Germany in Berlin, Vardy struck his first Wembley goal last night and produced an impressive all-round performance in the 2-1 defeat against an under-strength but impressively disciplined Netherlands side.It was not just his goal. His hunger had two Dutch players scrambling to clear the ball in an early incident in their box which epitomised the forward's tireless harrying of opponents. In the second half he nearly had a second goal with a long-distance drive that warmed goalkeeper...
Women’s U17 finals lineup complete
The eight teams in the UEFA European Women's Under-17 Championship finals have been confirmed, with hosts Belarus joined by the six elite round winners including Germany, holders Spain, the Czech Republic, Italy, Norway and England as well as best runners-up Serbia.Denmark, second behind Spain in Group 2, looked set to be the runners-up with the best record against the sides first and third in their section, but Serbia beat Iceland 5-1 in the last Group 6 match on Tuesday to snatch that berth on goals scored.QualifiersGroup 1: GermanyGroup 2: Spain (holders)Group 3: Czech Republic...
Under-21 qualifying updates
The 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship features a qualifying group stage and a play-off round to determine which 11 teams join hosts Poland in the final tournament.Qualifying group stageTeams are split into nine groups – seven of six sides and two of five – and play each other on a home-and-away basis. The nine group winners qualify automatically. The four runners-up with the best record against the nations first, third, fourth and fifth in their sections advance to the play-offs.Play-offsThe two play-off ties are contested according to the knockout system. The team that scores the greater aggregate of goals proceeds to...
What does England’s Berlin win mean?
England's comeback to win 3-2 in Germany has restored confidence in a national team who were exiting the 2014 FIFA World Cup just two games in when their old rivals were surging on to victory in Brazil.Germany led 2-0 in Berlin's Olympiastadion with less than half an hour to go but Harry Kane, substitute Jamie Vardy and, in added time, Eric Dier turned the game. England have another test against the Netherlands on Tuesday in Wembley, but does Saturday's victory suggest that Roy Hodgson's side have a real chance of claiming their first UEFA EURO title in France?Reasons to be hopeful:Players on formIt was perhaps no surprise that two...
Matuidi clinches France win as Portugal fall
Netherlands 2-3 France (De Jong 47, Afellay 86; Griezmann 6, Giroud 13, Matuidi 88)France: Mandanda; Evra (Digne 46), Koscielny, Varane, Jallet; Matuidi, Diarra (Kanté 46), Pogba (Sissoko 87); Payet, Giroud (Gignac 73), Griezmann (Martial 46).In a match halted in the 14th minute for 60 seconds of applause as a tribute to Johan Cruyff, Blaise Matuidi clinched a thrilling victory for the UEFA EURO 2016 hosts. A brilliant 20-minute free-kick and Olivier Giroud's volley following a Matuidi header had put France 2-0 up just ahead of the mark of respect for Cruyff. It seemed that a second-half recovery from a Netherla...
Under-19 elite round updates
The UEFA European Under-19 Championship consists of three distinct stages: the qualifying round, the elite round and the final tournament.Qualifying roundThe qualifying round, played in autumn, is made up of 13 groups of four teams playing in one-venue mini-tournaments. The top two from each progress alongside the third-placed team with the best record against the top pair in their group.Elite roundIn the elite round, played in the spring, those 27 qualifiers join the top seed, given a bye, in seven mini-tournament groups of four. The group winners then join the hosts in the finals.Final tournamentThe seven qualifiers plus the...