How do teams progress from third place in their Euro 2024 group?
Euro 2016 was the first tournament where third place group finishers qualified for the knockout rounds. Portugal finished third in their group in 2016 and went on to win the tournament!
So how does it work, what is likely to happen and who will the teams that qualify in third play?
In summary
Out of the teams that finish in third place across the 6 groups, the 4 with the highest amount of points will progress to the knockout rounds.
The knockout games those 4 teams will play depends on which groups the teams qualify from.
What if teams are level on points?
If teams are level on points it will come down to:
- 1. goal difference
- 2. goals scored
- 3. number of wins
- 4. lower disciplinary points total
- 5. position in the European Qualifiers rankings
How many points are you likely to need to progress from third place?
With 4 out of the 6 groups going through, it gives a good chance to your team!
Looking back at the last two tournaments gives a good indication of what is required. The data shows that 4 points will give teams a great chance of going through (though its not a certainty). It also shows teams are likely to need at least 3 points and then a good goal difference.
Euro 2016
| Group | Third Place | Points | Goal difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | Albania | 3 | -2 |
| Group B | Slovakia | 4 | 0 |
| Group C | Northern Ireland | 3 | 0 |
| Group D | Turkey | 3 | -2 |
| Group E | Republic of Ireland | 4 | -2 |
| Group F | Portugal | 3 | 0 |
Euro 2020
| Group | Third Place | Points | Goal difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | Switzerland | 4 | -1 |
| Group B | Finland | 3 | −2 |
| Group C | Ukraine | 3 | −1 |
| Group D | Czech Republic | 4 | +2 |
| Group E | Slovakia | 3 | -5 |
| Group F | Portugal | 4 | +1 |
What knockout games will the third place teams play in?
This is where it gets a bit more complicated!
In summary though, if a team finishes in 3rd position, they will play a group winner from group B, C, E or F.
The simplest way to work out the matches a given team could play is by visiting the team route page where you can see all the possibilities for that team.
Overall though, there are four games that teams who finish third can play in:
| Date | 3rd from Group | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 30th June - 5PM | A, D, E, or F | 1st group B | Gelsenkirchen |
| Sun 30th June - 8PM | D, E, or F | 1st group C | Cologne |
| Mon 1st July - 5PM | A, B, or C | 1st group F | Dusseldorf |
| Tue 2nd July - 5PM | A, B, C, or D | 1st group E | Munich |
Based on the groups which have the highest placed third place finishers, UEFA has predetermined the games they will play in.
| The groups where the four teams have come from | The games that the teams from each group will play | |||
| 30th June 5PM | 30th June 8PM | 2nd July 5PM | 1st July 5PM | |
| A B C D | A | D | B | C |
| A B C E | A | E | B | C |
| A B C F | A | F | B | C |
| A B D E | D | E | A | B |
| A B D F | D | F | A | B |
| A B E F | E | F | B | A |
| A C D E | E | D | C | A |
| A C D F | F | D | C | A |
| A C E F | E | F | C | A |
| A D E F | E | F | D | A |
| B C D E | E | D | B | C |
| B C D F | F | D | C | B |
| B C E F | F | E | C | B |
| B D E F | F | E | D | B |
| C D E F | F | E | D | C |
An example
Let's look at an example showing for each group the points total the third place team has:
- Group A - Scotland - 3 points
- Group B - Croatia - 4 points
- Group C - Serbia - 2 points
- Group D - Austria - 1 point
- Group E - Romania - 3 points
- Group F - Georgia - 1 point
In this example, Scotland, Croatia, Serbia, and Romania have the highest points and would qualify to the knockout rounds. Austria and Georgia would be knocked out.
The four teams came from Group A, B, C, and E, so they will play in these games:
- Scotland (from Group A) will play against 1st place from group B, on Sun 30th June at 5PM
- Croatia (from Group B) will play against 1st place from group E on Tue 2nd July at 5PM
- Serbia (from Group C) will play against 1st place from group F on Mon 1st July at 5PM
- Romania (from Group E) will play against 1st place from group C on Sun 30th June at 8PM