:00:36. > :00:39.EUro 2016 has officially kicked off and I'll admit,
:00:40. > :00:42.I'm a bit excited and I may have gone a little over
:00:43. > :00:45.Hello bunting-of-every-nation-competing!
:00:46. > :00:48.If you can't go all out for the start of a major
:00:49. > :00:51.international football tournament, when can you?
:00:52. > :01:02.It is my top picks for the players to watch throughout the competition.
:01:03. > :01:04.Manuel Neuer, Germany's number one and probably best
:01:05. > :01:07.Next, Paul Pogba with the hopes of the host nation
:01:08. > :01:11.Then, one of the most highly rated footballers in the world,
:01:12. > :01:15.Onto the home nations, another world-class player
:01:16. > :01:18.with another man bun hairstyle, Gareth Bale.
:01:19. > :01:24.Then, England's goal machine Harry Kane, and last but not least,
:01:25. > :01:28.Northern Ireland's talisman midfielder Steven Davis.
:01:29. > :01:35.They are just some of the stars entertaining us over the next month.
:01:36. > :01:45.First, what's coming up on today's show...
:01:46. > :01:47.We retrace the steps of Gareth Bale from Cardiff schoolboy to Galactico
:01:48. > :01:52.Major tournaments are not all about the big teams,
:01:53. > :01:55.Albanian fan Dario gives us the lowdown on his
:01:56. > :02:03.And Lewis Dunn, better known as CBBC's Jamie Johnson,
:02:04. > :02:06.is the first to reveal his first dream Euro five a side team.
:02:07. > :02:08.As if the tournament starting wasn't exciting enough,
:02:09. > :02:10.we also have a brand-new website which will have regular
:02:11. > :02:12.updates from France, plus quizzes, goals, games,
:02:13. > :02:16.You can send in video clips, why not try and recreate your
:02:17. > :02:23.You never know, you might end up on telly too!
:02:24. > :02:27.This man will be on telly and radio a lot, it's Match Of The Day
:02:28. > :02:30.Barring playing on the pitch, that is everyone's dream job!
:02:31. > :02:38.Hi, I'm Conor McNamara and I've arrived in France for Euro 2016.
:02:39. > :02:41.I will spend the next month travelling up and down the country.
:02:42. > :02:45.I will try to bring you a bit of the flavour of what it is like.
:02:46. > :02:47.I will upload video clips to the Match Of The Day Kickabout
:02:48. > :03:01.website, make sure that you check in regularly for those.
:03:02. > :03:04.And we also have your chance to record your voice
:03:05. > :03:13.Go to the website and the Kickabout page for details to how you can
:03:14. > :03:19.For anyone who watches the show regularly, you know that I love
:03:20. > :03:27.a good stat or two, or three, or four!
:03:28. > :03:31.This year is sure to throw a few more zingers along the way.
:03:32. > :03:33.What about the lesser-known facts that you may have missed?
:03:34. > :03:38.Here is my rapid round-up to bring you up to speed, the official mascot
:03:39. > :03:40.is called Super Victor, who has come across a magic treasure
:03:41. > :03:42.chest while having a kickabout with his friends.
:03:43. > :03:44.Not surprisingly, his colours are the official colours
:03:45. > :03:48.And this is the beautiful game, it takes 18 months of testing
:03:49. > :03:51.to bring out one of these and it has better grip and visibility
:03:52. > :03:55.As for the teams, if you thought Spain were footballing heavyweights,
:03:56. > :03:57.you would be wrong, they have the second lightest squad
:03:58. > :04:01.Germany are the heaviest and will be hoping to throw their weight around
:04:02. > :04:05.England are this year's young guns with an average
:04:06. > :04:11.Ireland's players may be nursing aching limbs,
:04:12. > :04:15.Not bad considering Robbie Keane must be 105 now!
:04:16. > :04:17.Not content with having the youngest team now, England also
:04:18. > :04:19.boast the youngest player in Marcus Rashford, only 18.5.
:04:20. > :04:22.Shay Given, on the other hand, both 22 years his senior
:04:23. > :04:25.The tallest player of the tournament happens to be
:04:26. > :04:28.He is 2.3 metres high - Lorenzo Insignue,
:04:29. > :04:30.at 1.63 metres, is the shortest player of the Euros.
:04:31. > :04:35.Right, while I catch my breath, these are the fixtures today.
:04:36. > :04:45.Two of our teams start their campaigns today.
:04:46. > :04:48.The first is Wales who, later this afternoon,
:04:49. > :04:56.here in the 42,000 seater stadium in Bordeaux.
:04:57. > :04:58.Chris Coleman's men were given a fantastic sendoff
:04:59. > :05:02.Buoyed by the news that star man Gareth Bale got through the
:05:03. > :05:06.But how does a shy schoolboy from Cardiff become the world's most
:05:07. > :05:11.Seeing him do it and being from the same background makes
:05:12. > :05:16.When we see pictures, it gives you a drive to do
:05:17. > :05:23.Everyone here wants to be the next Gareth Bale.
:05:24. > :05:25.COMMENTATOR: It's Gareth Bale, he is brilliant!
:05:26. > :05:28.It is inspiring, looking at someone who went to the school and has
:05:29. > :05:41.And now he's at Madrid, one of the best clubs in the world.
:05:42. > :05:43.I remember how thinking, how far would he get?
:05:44. > :05:45.I have to admit I wasn't expecting this level.
:05:46. > :05:48.We are proud of him in terms of what he's done.
:05:49. > :05:50.Never wanted him to miss a school game, that's important!
:05:51. > :06:04.It's about a young man reaching his dream and it's great
:06:05. > :06:06.to see the next generation of players are inspired
:06:07. > :06:16.Yes, the school has developed over numerous years to honour basically
:06:17. > :06:19.young male and female athletes that have represented Wales
:06:20. > :06:28.That is one from when he played Southampton.
:06:29. > :06:34.He played in the FA youth cup, a year younger
:06:35. > :06:44.You haven't changed much but Gareth has!
:06:45. > :06:48.He has developed massively since he left school,
:06:49. > :06:52.it is an inspiration for the small football players, who
:06:53. > :07:07.Very quietly, it was lovely when we put this up on the wall,
:07:08. > :07:15.He had come back and presented a shirt.
:07:16. > :07:17.He had great vision and a great touch.
:07:18. > :07:18.I think most importantly a great attitude.
:07:19. > :07:21.He had that drive and dedication to achieve his goals, and be
:07:22. > :07:28.It's funny, you see a young man's dream come true.
:07:29. > :07:30.It is a male and female's dream of doing it.
:07:31. > :07:33.If we played a small part in helping these young men and women
:07:34. > :07:41.achieve their potential, and their goals in life, we are happy.
:07:42. > :07:48.And Wales have got to be hoping for a win against Slovakia,
:07:49. > :07:51.especially with the likes of Russia and England in group B as well.
:07:52. > :07:59.Those two face off this evening in Marseille.
:08:00. > :08:02.For Roy Hodgson and his Three Lions, there has been the usual fanfare
:08:03. > :08:04.surrounding everything they do, from boarding the plane
:08:05. > :08:06.to the state-of-the-art training base.
:08:07. > :08:08.It can get overwhelming so we've sifted through hours of press
:08:09. > :08:10.coverage to create this handy England guide.
:08:11. > :08:13.England have won all ten group matches, and will go to France
:08:14. > :08:21.I believe that if they perform any thing like to the level
:08:22. > :08:24.that they are capable of performing we will be a hard team to beat.
:08:25. > :08:30.It's simply a question of taking the extra attacker or midfielder,
:08:31. > :08:37.we decided the extra attacker - so Marcus Rashford was included.
:08:38. > :08:41.Some players, you just let them play.
:08:42. > :08:52.I'm excited and proud to lead the team into the tournament.
:08:53. > :08:55.And believe we have a good enough squad to do well.
:08:56. > :09:03.Our main aim was to get out the group and obviously
:09:04. > :09:27.I remember as a kid, growing up and watching it.
:09:28. > :09:30.I'm over the moon, I received a text from England telling me
:09:31. > :09:33.We will be a young squad, we are very lucky.
:09:34. > :09:36.We will experience this every week, and it is a great honour.
:09:37. > :09:38.I think it is important to be confident and concentrate,
:09:39. > :09:40.going into the final and hopefully start
:09:41. > :09:44.So, all eyes are on England to see if they can win
:09:45. > :09:57.But it isn't just the big teams who get to perform
:09:58. > :10:00.For countries like Albania who play Switzerland at lunchtime,
:10:01. > :10:02.it is a huge achievement just to get this far.
:10:03. > :10:08.As is Dario, who lives in the UK, but supports the Eagles.
:10:09. > :10:11.My name is Dario and I'm a big Albania fan.
:10:12. > :10:22.It is one of the key events in Albania.
:10:23. > :10:29.I've been an Albania fan for three years now.
:10:30. > :10:31.I love that they've started with a small team and
:10:32. > :10:39.Now they've got to the Euros, which they could do really good at.
:10:40. > :10:42.Is the first time Albania has ever been to a major tournament.
:10:43. > :10:56.I will be going to the Euros to see them play Romania.
:10:57. > :11:00.Me and my dad are there for three days, it will be a good trip.
:11:01. > :11:02.Romania 's nickname is their Eagles, and my favourite player
:11:03. > :11:06.He always looks to help his team out.
:11:07. > :11:12.If Albania played England, and it would be tough.
:11:13. > :11:15.If England score I would be cheering, but if Albania score
:11:16. > :11:19.It is my home country against my home country again.
:11:20. > :11:22.What I like about Albania is when we go there,
:11:23. > :11:26.There are a lot of mountains and lakes.
:11:27. > :11:28.Albania paint their buildings with yellow,
:11:29. > :11:37.The chant Albanians use for a football match is an eagle.
:11:38. > :12:02.You may have noticed that CBBC is football mad
:12:03. > :12:05.If you haven't seen new drama Jamie Johnson,
:12:06. > :12:12.The episodes are on iPlayer right now.
:12:13. > :12:14.Lead character Jamie is played by Lewis Dunn, the first
:12:15. > :12:20.I'm Jamie Johnson and this is my dream Euro five aside.
:12:21. > :12:23.I'm Jamie Johnson and this is my dream Euro five a side.
:12:24. > :12:29.In defence, Smalling and Stones, Smalling has had a great season
:12:30. > :12:39.John Stones, he had a great season for Everton.
:12:40. > :12:43.In midfield, Jamie Johnson and Marcus Rashford upfront,
:12:44. > :12:52.because he is fast with a good finish.
:12:53. > :12:54.That is my Euro dream five aside team.
:12:55. > :13:03.Throughout the tournament you can send in your Euro five a side teams.
:13:04. > :13:05.I am expecting your selections to change as matches progress.
:13:06. > :13:08.I will be regularly updating mine and every week on the show
:13:09. > :13:10.we will follow the most popular player selections.
:13:11. > :13:15.Once today's three big matches are out the way,
:13:16. > :13:19.there is only another three more tomorrow.
:13:20. > :13:22.World champions Germany play Ukraine in group C.
:13:23. > :13:25.It is fair to say that they are using their world champion status
:13:26. > :13:35.Look at this big gold World Cup badge on the shirt,
:13:36. > :13:39.Before that, Northern Ireland play their historic campaign
:13:40. > :13:45.It is a massive achievement for the manager Michael O'Neill
:13:46. > :13:47.and for his team to get to this stage.
:13:48. > :14:03.We all dream of wearing the Northern Ireland Crest, and emulating the
:14:04. > :14:09.late and great George Best. We've hosted every tournament since 1986
:14:10. > :14:14.-- been in. We thought we would be on a roll but we did not qualify. It
:14:15. > :14:21.was making us sick. We had missed out on every tournament since 1986.
:14:22. > :14:33.We managed to finish top of the group. That's fantastic, thank you
:14:34. > :14:39.guys. It had been a long time coming, 30
:14:40. > :14:43.years. And a whole generation of Northern Ireland fans have never had
:14:44. > :14:46.the chance to see their country play in a major tournament. There is a
:14:47. > :14:50.huge sense of excitement in the whole country. We will make
:14:51. > :14:53.ourselves difficult to beat and we have played some great football,
:14:54. > :15:00.that is why we have to replicate in the finals. If you look at the likes
:15:01. > :15:06.of Lewandowski, he is in the top three in the world. Looking at the
:15:07. > :15:11.German squad, they are so strong in every department. Jamie Ward is a
:15:12. > :15:16.player who is very exciting to watch committee has great skill, pace and
:15:17. > :15:18.power. Steven Davis has great ability to have the ball under
:15:19. > :15:23.pressure. They are two players that I will
:15:24. > :15:27.pick out most that you will see some indifferent from.
:15:28. > :15:31.Michael O'Neill, you've inspired me to predict a win for Northern
:15:32. > :15:37.Ireland tomorrow against Poland. I can then write it on my Kickabout
:15:38. > :15:40.Euro 2016 wall chart which, by the way, you can download and print from
:15:41. > :15:43.the website. That's all we've got time for I'm
:15:44. > :15:47.afraid. I will leave you with a taste of the Superstars hoping to
:15:48. > :15:53.put themselves in the history books over the next few weeks. Au revoir!
:15:54. > :16:00.FUNKY MUSIC