The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, which will be the 14th such event, will be jointly hosted by Poland and the Ukraine. 16 national teams will compete for the title of European champions.

The draw for the initial qualifying round is scheduled to take place in Warsaw on 7 February 2010. This draw will determine the composition of 6 groups of 6 teams together with 3 groups of 5 teams. The winning teams from each group together with the best runner-up from each group will qualify automatically. The remaining runners-up will compete in a 2 match play-off to determine the remaining four teams for inclusion in the main tournament. Poland and Ukraine, the hosts, qualify automatically.

The sixteen qualifying teams are spread equally across 4 groups, A through D. These groups will again play in a league format; the winners and runners-up from these groups will then progress to the quarter finals, through to semi-finals, then to the final (all three stages are decided by knockout).

There are few obvious predictions for the 2012 championship every single tournament from 2008 back to 1988 has seen a different winner! As 2008 winners, Spain are the bookies' favourite, but there are many teams with a good chance of success.

Betting options are many and various you are far from limited to betting on the overall winners. You can place bets on the losers from each group, players who will receive red cards, winners in particular matches, loses in particular matches – in 2007 there were even 3-1 odds on the tournament being taken away from Poland (this now, thankfully, seems unlikely to happen).