:00:17. > :00:20.Good afternoon. It is just 189 days to go until the start of Euro 2012.
:00:20. > :00:25.In the next hour, England and the Republic of Ireland will find out
:00:25. > :00:29.what lies ahead next summer. 16 countries will be in Poland and the
:00:29. > :00:39.Ukraine. The competition has given us plenty of memories over the
:00:39. > :00:57.
:00:57. > :01:07.not seen a match like this in years! Here is Ally McCoist! What a
:01:07. > :01:14.
:01:14. > :01:18.Spain definitely the ones to avoid this time around. Crossing their
:01:18. > :01:23.collective fingers for a favourable draw, we have Martin Keown, in the
:01:23. > :01:26.English camp, and Mark Lawrenson English camp, and Mark Lawrenson
:01:26. > :01:35.with his eyes on the Irish. The two host nations are among the top
:01:35. > :01:45.seeds and already know their fate to some extent. The rest of the
:01:45. > :02:03.
:02:03. > :02:07.country's are seeded with the These are always entertaining
:02:07. > :02:12.affairs. They tend to have a long build-up and then you pull out a
:02:12. > :02:16.few balls. Very significant and very important. This time around,
:02:16. > :02:20.with the fact the two host nations of possibly the weakest sides in
:02:20. > :02:26.the competition, it makes the draw out of group a more important than
:02:26. > :02:31.ever. It does. From England's point of view, it looks like Spain could
:02:31. > :02:35.be one we want to avoid. Portugal are another one. The French are
:02:35. > :02:39.starting to re-emerge. There are lots of difficult teams in Pot 2,
:02:39. > :02:43.it's difficult for England to see how they're going to progress and
:02:43. > :02:46.win this tournament. We are hopeful we get a lucky draw and somehow
:02:46. > :02:53.they might just pick out the Irish today. You've got the feeling about
:02:53. > :02:58.that but you don't. No, I don't. From Ireland's point of view, while
:02:58. > :03:03.it would be a great fixture, I don't think they want England, they
:03:03. > :03:09.wanted something easier than England. Germany? Exactly! They've
:03:09. > :03:14.come in by the back door because -- but that is great. You would want
:03:14. > :03:18.an ideal world, you wouldn't want England. In some ways you look at
:03:18. > :03:24.it and you've got Spain in the top group. But if you look at the
:03:24. > :03:29.second group, with the likes of Germany... What makes it almost
:03:29. > :03:34.better to be in that one than perhaps the top group. I think so.
:03:34. > :03:39.The quality in the second is better because of the two poor teams in
:03:39. > :03:43.the first group. If you widen it out with England, it's a tournament.
:03:43. > :03:45.In a tournament, they don't do particularly well. Whoever they
:03:45. > :03:49.draw, they've got to learn from those massive mistakes they made in
:03:49. > :03:53.the World Cup, and I don't just mean the players, I mean the
:03:53. > :04:01.manager, the FA and all those things. A lot can happen between
:04:01. > :04:11.now and June. I think we are looking for Poland. Or even Ukraine.
:04:11. > :04:12.
:04:12. > :04:15.One of the two. What about from Pot 3, of Greece? Even Sweden that we
:04:15. > :04:20.played recently didn't look the best. I think the fact that they
:04:20. > :04:30.are home nations will give them an extra bit of spice. The best one
:04:30. > :04:31.
:04:31. > :04:36.from Pot 4? Denmark. You don't want to take the French. The other thing
:04:36. > :04:40.we will find out today is who plays where. There are eight venues in
:04:40. > :04:45.total, four in each country. England are based in Krakow, so
:04:46. > :04:49.they will be hoping to play the majority of their games in Poland.
:04:49. > :04:56.Groups and C would make that possible. They could be some big
:04:56. > :05:01.treks across Ukraine to come. Donetsk could be a place to avoid
:05:01. > :05:06.considering how far away it is from Krakow. Our man amongst the balls
:05:06. > :05:09.in the Halls is Jonathan Pearce. As we speak, he is outside the arena
:05:09. > :05:15.and listening up for the build-up. These things never seem to be quick,
:05:15. > :05:20.what is in store for us? Very exciting, dignitaries are arriving,
:05:20. > :05:23.the coaches of arriving. We will have the draw, all the drama. Will
:05:23. > :05:28.England get the dreaded group, will they get Spain, will they play
:05:28. > :05:33.Ireland for the first time in the European final since England played
:05:33. > :05:37.them in 1988? We will have politics, the Ukraine President is speaking.
:05:37. > :05:42.We will have Ukrainian culture, there's a dance troupe here, a
:05:42. > :05:46.singer. We will see videotape of all the venues. How the country has
:05:46. > :05:51.arrived at these finals coming up in the summer. Very exciting times
:05:51. > :06:01.ahead. Then we've got to go through that draw and work out just to play
:06:01. > :06:02.
:06:02. > :06:05.through. He is very excited, his eyes are boarding out of his head!
:06:05. > :06:14.They liked to put on a bit of a show in these drawers. Are you
:06:14. > :06:19.looking forward to the extravaganza? No. As we know,
:06:19. > :06:25.extravaganza is just such the wrong word for this. 30 of minutes to
:06:25. > :06:28.draw the ball out. Just get on with it. It is true. As a player, when
:06:28. > :06:32.this is taking place, you are getting on with your own domestic
:06:32. > :06:36.situation. You don't know if you are going to be in the squad. It
:06:36. > :06:40.doesn't matter at the moment really, because England have to find some
:06:40. > :06:45.form come the summer. We want a good draw today, the English need
:06:45. > :06:52.to be lucky. We want to avoid Spain. Do you hate Christmas as well,
:06:52. > :06:59.Lawro? No, I don't. I love Christmas. I'm sorry, I've sat
:06:59. > :07:05.through too many. They are boring. Please state, don't go anywhere.
:07:05. > :07:08.Don't listen to Lawro, he doesn't know what he's talking about! We
:07:08. > :07:13.will be handing over to Kiev shortly. But there are still five
:07:13. > :07:17.minutes until things get under way. A quick look at the sides to avoid.
:07:17. > :07:27.Despite last month's win over Spain, England would perhaps prefer to
:07:27. > :07:27.
:07:27. > :08:13.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:08:13. > :08:19.meet the world champions later in The world champions, the reigning
:08:19. > :08:24.European champions. Over 20 games unbeaten in any qualifier. They are
:08:24. > :08:27.really quite something, even though they were a number two won the
:08:27. > :08:31.world for a while, they are back to number one now. They are like a
:08:31. > :08:37.machine. The way they play, churning out trophies. Their ideas
:08:37. > :08:40.to come from them as well. You think of Fabregas, Xavi is the
:08:40. > :08:44.player he was pulling the strings. It's going to be tough. I think it
:08:44. > :08:47.makes the competition fantastic because this is a special group.
:08:47. > :08:54.think you might argue they could have three teams. They've
:08:54. > :08:57.definitely got two. You can't, you are only a loud around 22 players.
:08:57. > :09:04.You are not too far off the same age as me and when we grew up,
:09:04. > :09:10.Brazil were the team. Spain are now Brazil for me. For young lads now
:09:10. > :09:14.of 15 think Brazil on any good. It's Spain. A different style.
:09:14. > :09:21.different level. If it is possible, it's a better level because of the
:09:21. > :09:25.way they play. Even though England batted them at Wembley. Come on!
:09:25. > :09:30.The one thing about Spain, they haven't got Messi. They struggled
:09:30. > :09:34.to score goals against a fairly ordinary England side but you would
:09:34. > :09:38.expect Spain to score goals. That's because he is Argentinian, that's
:09:38. > :09:41.why he's not playing for Spain. feisty affair with the Netherlands
:09:41. > :09:44.is another potential for England and Ireland. The Dutch are ranked
:09:44. > :09:54.second in the world after top- scoring and the Euro 2012
:09:54. > :10:31.
:10:31. > :10:36.qualifiers and reaching the World No. Two won the world. I guess
:10:37. > :10:43.everyone else outside of the competition would like to avoid.
:10:43. > :10:46.outstanding World Cup apart from the final. It was awful. Not like
:10:47. > :10:51.the Dutch. They've got outstanding players and now they seem to have
:10:51. > :10:56.got over, remember a few years ago they seemed to have factions within
:10:56. > :11:01.the team that seemed to be pulling in all directions, not any more.
:11:01. > :11:05.Perhaps a chance to redeem themselves for that final.
:11:05. > :11:08.Persie coming into a bit of form. I thought he was quite quiet in the
:11:08. > :11:13.World Cup but now he is probably the player they are going to look
:11:13. > :11:18.to to score the goals. He has had a brilliant year for Arsenal. It's
:11:18. > :11:28.just keeping him fit. The thing about him, like one of the Dutch
:11:28. > :11:36.lads were saying, they fancy Huntelaar as well. But van Persie,
:11:36. > :11:41.surely. One side England will avoid, but Ireland could get them, are
:11:41. > :11:47.Germany. They are the team that are the biggest threat to Spain.
:11:47. > :11:52.think most definitely. I would have them as joint favourites. Really?
:11:52. > :11:57.They've won every game. The way they play, the whole club set-up is
:11:58. > :12:03.set up for the national team. They've got one or two younger
:12:03. > :12:07.players also coming in. This is a big thing. They do tournaments.
:12:07. > :12:12.They get the whole thing. It's been quite a while since they have won
:12:12. > :12:19.one. It is, but they get so far. I think they are real danger to win
:12:19. > :12:23.this competition. They have firepower as well. They are coming
:12:23. > :12:27.in at the right time. They are starting to mature, they've got
:12:27. > :12:31.their experience from the World Cup and this might be their moment.
:12:31. > :12:36.Aside from Spain and Germany, who else do you see as the big threats
:12:36. > :12:42.in this competition? The French, they could start to do something.
:12:42. > :12:45.They are 17 games without losing. They are moving into position.
:12:45. > :12:53.have such an awful World Cup but they have responded really well.
:12:53. > :12:57.part due to the manager. He was just a joke. Laurent Blanc has got
:12:57. > :13:01.the respect of the players because of what he was as a player but also
:13:01. > :13:05.he has got the job at exactly the right time. It's a great time to
:13:05. > :13:09.take over the French national team. You wouldn't want to play Portugal,
:13:09. > :13:14.Ronaldo is probably the best player... And they have done quite
:13:14. > :13:24.well against England as well. know, they have knocked England out
:13:24. > :13:25.
:13:25. > :13:28.on so many different occasions. Remember this moment? Absolutely. I
:13:28. > :13:33.think almost with portable, they are not as good a team as they were
:13:33. > :13:37.and they are more of a one-man team. It but what a one-man team that is.
:13:37. > :13:43.He's going to be the player of the tournament if he plays like he does
:13:43. > :13:47.for Real Madrid. I'm pretty pleased that they qualified eventually.
:13:47. > :13:53.don't think they are as big a threat as they have been in other
:13:53. > :13:57.competitions. Do you think Rooney will bowl, come what may? Has to.
:13:57. > :14:01.Would Argentina not take Messi to the World Cup? They have to take
:14:01. > :14:06.him. The fact that England very rarely qualified for the latter
:14:06. > :14:11.stages... You still have to take him. We will find out soon if he is
:14:11. > :14:16.going to be successful. He might be reduced to two games. You'd take
:14:16. > :14:20.him, wouldn't you? Absolutely. He is England's best player. You have
:14:20. > :14:24.to take him and hope that you get through at the knockout stages. A
:14:24. > :14:28.lot will depend on the draw. Whether you think the chances of
:14:28. > :14:34.England of good or not. The thing about England, we all complained
:14:34. > :14:39.about last year, about the World Cup, they look a better team. That
:14:39. > :14:45.is the only way to play with the players they've got. It's the
:14:45. > :14:55.moment Lawro has been waiting for. England fans have waited Ade years
:14:55. > :14:57.
:14:57. > :15:04.Thanks, Garrett. Ukraine's Palace of art is ready - politicians,
:15:04. > :15:14.football leaders, coaches are all seated. Now it is time, here in
:15:14. > :15:14.
:15:14. > :16:00.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:16:00. > :16:03.The vibrant capital of the Ukraine is ready. The Palace of art is 15
:16:03. > :16:10.minutes' walk from the Olympic Stadium, where the final will take
:16:10. > :16:17.place on the 1st July. Suspense is growing. Ukrainian entertainment
:16:17. > :16:27.lies ahead. We will have Cossack dancing, we will have legends like
:16:27. > :16:29.
:16:29. > :16:36.Oleh Blokin. TRANSLATION:...
:16:36. > :16:46.He is saying it is going to be an excellent tournament. He is saying
:16:46. > :16:50.
:16:50. > :16:53.that footballing history is going to be made. This is the P Virsky
:16:53. > :17:03.the Ukrainian National Folk Dance Ensemble. They have been going for
:17:03. > :17:03.
:17:03. > :18:18.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:18:18. > :18:24.74 years. Cossack dancing was Historical Ukrainian dance
:18:24. > :18:34.traditions to celebrate a harvest, the winter festivals, Berthes and
:18:34. > :18:34.
:18:34. > :19:52.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:19:52. > :19:57.Olga Freimut, she is hour TV Welcome to the national palates of
:19:57. > :20:03.Arts here in Kiev for the all- important draw -- the National
:20:03. > :20:10.Palace of Arts. The tournament kicks off in Poland and Ukraine in
:20:10. > :20:14.just six months' time. Yes, all of our friends are looking forward to
:20:14. > :20:17.welcoming fans from all across Europe and the world, to welcome
:20:17. > :20:25.them to our very own celebration of football. Tonight there will be
:20:25. > :20:32.more entertainment like our opening routine from P Virsky. Many thanks
:20:32. > :20:37.to them. Most importantly, though, the 16 competing nations will learn
:20:37. > :20:42.of what awaits them in the group stages of the competition when we
:20:42. > :20:45.make the official draw for Uefa euro 2012. We will also be joined
:20:45. > :20:52.on this stage by some of the greatest names in the history of
:20:52. > :21:02.football. First, we are or not to be joined by the President of
:21:02. > :21:11.
:21:11. > :21:14.Ukraine. I will do my best. Basically, he is
:21:14. > :21:18.saying it is the first time in football history that this
:21:18. > :21:22.competition will have taken place in central and eastern Europe. For
:21:22. > :21:27.the Ukraine it is more than just a sports competition, the country has
:21:27. > :21:32.proved to the world that it can act as a reliable partner. Huge changes
:21:32. > :21:35.have taken place in social, economic and cultural life in the
:21:35. > :21:41.Ukraine. It is certainly a change country from when I first came here
:21:41. > :21:45.a decade ago. He is saying that they have built new stadiums, new
:21:45. > :21:48.airports to open Ukraine to the world was up he is convinced that
:21:48. > :21:58.the competition will be a great feast for millions of football
:21:58. > :21:59.
:21:59. > :22:02.supporters. If you are coming, a cup of beer will cost you about 80p.
:22:02. > :22:12.Travel in Ukraine could be a problem. Not so much in Poland, of
:22:12. > :22:18.
:22:18. > :22:28.course. Kiev certainly is a commercial city now. You see many
:22:28. > :22:41.
:22:41. > :22:45.of the high-street shops we have at They do not think that the speech
:22:45. > :22:55.that was submitted to Uefa is the speech that he is giving. It is his
:22:55. > :23:01.
:23:01. > :23:06.moment, though. -- I do not think. Ukraine gave the world Tchaikovsky,
:23:06. > :23:16.Prokofiev, Vladimir Klitschko and Vitaly Klitschko. Michel Platini,
:23:16. > :23:17.
:23:17. > :23:27.watching on. You may remember watching the scenes of one million
:23:27. > :23:27.
:23:27. > :23:33.people in Kiev for the Orange Revolution.
:23:33. > :23:40.We are all looking forward to next June when the first of the matches
:23:40. > :23:46.kicks of that we can all start creating history together.
:23:46. > :23:49.matches in a eight host cities - four in Ukraine and four more in
:23:49. > :23:55.Poland. Eight beautiful historic cities that are ready and prepared
:23:55. > :24:05.to extend a hand of friendship to football fans from around the globe.
:24:05. > :24:07.
:24:07. > :24:12.Let us look at the host cities. Five games to be played in Warsaw's
:24:12. > :24:18.national stadium. The City was completely rebuilt after the
:24:18. > :24:28.ravages of World War II. One million people died there. It is a
:24:28. > :24:32.
:24:32. > :24:38.skyline of soaring skyscrapers now. Old buildings have been restored.
:24:38. > :24:48.The Municipal Stadium is about 200 miles from Warsaw and it will hold
:24:48. > :24:53.some games. The place was an inspiration for Pablo Picasso. In
:24:53. > :25:03.Gdansk - the key to everything, said Napoleon. Solidarity was born
:25:03. > :25:07.
:25:08. > :25:17.there. Like Valencia, who became President. -- let...
:25:18. > :25:40.
:25:40. > :25:45.On deposit and. Three games there. Ukrainian cities. Lviv is the
:25:45. > :25:54.capital of western Ukraine. It was here that Ukrainian capitalism re-
:25:54. > :26:04.emerged in the 1980s. Kharkiv is in the engine room of agricultural
:26:04. > :26:21.
:26:21. > :26:26.Ukraine. It does the manufacture of Donetsk will have five games. That
:26:26. > :26:36.is the heart of the coal-mining region. They also call at the City
:26:36. > :26:37.
:26:37. > :26:47.of roses. -- call it. There will be five matches there, including the
:26:47. > :26:53.
:26:53. > :26:57.final. It is known as the mother city of all Eastern Slavic people.
:26:57. > :27:07.Now we are straight onto our next entertainment, a young lady called
:27:07. > :27:07.
:27:07. > :30:31.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:30:31. > :30:36.I think Fabio Capello was rocking out to that. The official slogan of
:30:36. > :30:42.Euro 2012 is creating history together. It really sums up the
:30:42. > :30:46.spirit of unity between Ukraine and Poland, to make this the best
:30:46. > :30:50.European Championship ever. To celebrate the tournament, we
:30:50. > :31:00.decided to create a visual illustration of the sense of
:31:00. > :31:03.
:31:03. > :31:07.Some of the greatest names in football have graced the euro. We
:31:07. > :31:13.invited them, one from each tournament, to take their place in
:31:13. > :31:18.the wall of legends. Our chosen players were all signed one of the
:31:18. > :31:21.authentic match balls used in their UEFA Euro win, to create iconic
:31:21. > :31:24.symbols of each individual championship. Each match ball will
:31:25. > :31:34.be mounted on the wall of legends, which will become a unique
:31:35. > :31:35.
:31:35. > :31:40.exhibition of the history of Ladies and gentlemen, every
:31:40. > :31:44.tournament produces its own stars. Names and faces that entered the
:31:44. > :31:54.history of the game. Please welcome some of those greats of European
:31:54. > :32:00.
:32:00. > :32:06.football who have created the 1960, this player got the extra-
:32:06. > :32:12.time winner in Paris to Yugoslavia, 2-1. He also scored in the semi-
:32:12. > :32:19.final against the Czech Republic. The man who scored the goal for the
:32:19. > :32:29.former USSR that won the championship. Very few people knew
:32:29. > :32:32.
:32:32. > :32:40.Luis Suarez of Spain in 1964 was in the side that beat the Soviet Union
:32:40. > :32:48.in the final in Madrid, 2-1. He was man of the match as Bain one with
:32:48. > :32:58.victory over the Soviet Union. -- as Spain 1 with victory over the
:32:58. > :33:07.
:33:07. > :33:17.1968, Italy's winning side. One of One of the legends of the Italian
:33:17. > :33:22.
:33:22. > :33:26.The Italian manager was looking on there. The West Germany side in
:33:26. > :33:36.1972. Beat England on the way through. One of the greatest full-
:33:36. > :33:47.
:33:47. > :33:51.backs there ever has been in 1976, Czechoslovakia beat Germany
:33:51. > :34:01.in a shoot-out, after a thrilling 2-2 draw. A wonderfully cheeky
:34:01. > :34:12.
:34:12. > :34:19.In 1980, it was West Germany's turn again. England went out, they
:34:19. > :34:29.suffered tear gas in Turin. Rupesh scored two in the final. Germany
:34:29. > :34:31.
:34:31. > :34:41.were winners again thanks to this What a player this was. France,
:34:41. > :34:56.
:34:56. > :34:59.1984. What a team that was. 14 1988 in Germany, Marco van Basten
:34:59. > :35:09.from the Netherlands scored perhaps the greatest goal ever in the
:35:09. > :35:19.competition history to beat the USSR in the final. From 1988, Marco
:35:19. > :35:22.
:35:22. > :35:26.Denmark got in through the back door in 1992 because war-torn
:35:27. > :35:36.Yugoslavia were omitted. They won it and Peter Schmeichel, of
:35:37. > :35:47.
:35:47. > :35:57.Manchester United, was the key role Wembley, football came home in 1996.
:35:57. > :36:09.
:36:09. > :36:17.Unfortunately, Germany went away How about this? Zinedine Zidane.
:36:17. > :36:25.France were winners in 2000, having won the World Cup two years earlier.
:36:25. > :36:35.From 2000, Zinedine Zidane from France. He excelled in the final
:36:35. > :36:40.
:36:40. > :36:50.against Italy. Greece winning in Portugal in 2004 was one of the big
:36:50. > :37:01.
:37:01. > :37:11.So to Austria and Switzerland, four years ago. This play emerged in
:37:11. > :37:26.
:37:26. > :37:30.Spain's first choice as left-back I think the plan is she interviews
:37:30. > :37:35.one Lord two of them. You won the very first tournament with the
:37:35. > :37:45.Soviet Union. How does it feel to see European championships come
:37:45. > :37:51.
:37:51. > :37:56.I wish I could tell you what he is saying but unfortunately, I haven't
:37:56. > :38:06.the foggiest. He is saying, I am very glad that football is coming
:38:06. > :38:10.
:38:10. > :38:17.to our neighbours in the way it can. Ukraine and Poland. And then in
:38:17. > :38:23.2018, we have the championship in Russia as well. Look at that
:38:23. > :38:30.football, that is when football's really were footballs. Marco, what
:38:30. > :38:35.are your memories of the golden era of 1988 with Dutch football? It was
:38:35. > :38:41.a bit of an orange summer for us. We were delighted. Finally we were
:38:41. > :38:51.able to win a tournament after 74 and 78, when we lost the final. We
:38:51. > :38:52.
:38:52. > :38:56.could finally holed up the cup. It You have been the world and
:38:56. > :39:06.European champion with France. This tournament is really where players
:39:06. > :39:08.
:39:08. > :39:18.get to test themselves against the It is a most difficult competition
:39:18. > :39:21.
:39:21. > :39:31.to win. With 16 great teams like these we have tonight, the quality
:39:31. > :39:32.
:39:32. > :39:42.This is the most successful time for Spanish football ever. You must
:39:42. > :40:04.
:40:04. > :40:13.hold some special memories of the HE SPEAKS IN SPANISH.
:40:13. > :40:18.He said it was so important because they waited so long, since 1964.
:40:18. > :40:25.That is why the success was so miserable. They are going to repeat
:40:25. > :40:30.it in Poland and Ukraine. That is his manager there. Thank you for
:40:30. > :40:34.the moment, gentlemen. Can I just say what a privilege it is to stand
:40:34. > :40:39.on the same stage as such an array of legends representing the whole
:40:39. > :40:45.history of the way for European Championships. OK, so we have
:40:45. > :40:50.players and match balls from every Euro event. There is still
:40:50. > :40:59.something missing. Introducing the official match ball for the
:40:59. > :41:09.official Euro 2012 inspired by a This is when we will see the new
:41:09. > :41:18.
:41:18. > :41:28.Mums and dads, you will probably have an edition coming up for the
:41:28. > :41:30.
:41:30. > :41:40.The blond head German in there, he destroyed England at Wembley if you
:41:40. > :42:15.
:42:15. > :42:25.Zinedine Zidane had such balletic ability for such a big man. Better
:42:25. > :42:27.
:42:27. > :42:37.Please welcome on the stage the Ukrainian legend and one of the
:42:37. > :42:37.
:42:37. > :42:46.greatest athletes the world has ever seen. He lives in Donetsk, the
:42:46. > :42:50.six-times world pole vault champion. And the match ball is the Adidas
:42:50. > :42:56.tango 12. Thank you so much for bringing the official match ball.
:42:56. > :43:00.Could you have scored with this one? I like it very much. I like
:43:00. > :43:05.football, and I think this all will bring a lot of success for Euro
:43:05. > :43:10.2012 for Ukraine and Poland. I know you have been involved in the
:43:10. > :43:14.development of the Olympic Stadium. Tell us, is everything ready for
:43:14. > :43:18.the Games here in Kiev? Yes, the stadium is ready. I think it's one
:43:18. > :43:21.of the best stadiums today in the world. I believe it will be
:43:22. > :43:26.fantastic games in this stadium and an unforgettable final. The you
:43:26. > :43:33.must be so happy and proud that such a big event has come into our
:43:33. > :43:38.home country. I am very proud that Ukraine and Poland host Euro 2012.
:43:38. > :43:43.For me it is a great honour, because Ukraine is a supportive
:43:43. > :43:53.nation. It will be an enjoyable and unforgettable championship. Please
:43:53. > :43:55.
:43:55. > :43:58.We've seen football legends from the past and the match ball. Now we
:43:58. > :44:02.will move on. The goal of every young footballer is to represent
:44:02. > :44:06.their country at the highest level and win trophies on the biggest
:44:06. > :44:09.stages. In Europe, there is no bigger stage than the way for
:44:09. > :44:15.European Championships. And the prize they all seek is the famous
:44:15. > :44:21.trophy. The last tournament in Austria and Switzerland was the
:44:21. > :44:31.greatest festival of European football so far. And the images of
:44:31. > :44:57.
:44:57. > :45:07.UEFA 2008 will live long in the The trophy was made bigger for 2008.
:45:07. > :45:09.
:45:09. > :45:14.It is Silva, it now weighs eight Will England finally get to lift
:45:14. > :45:22.the big trophy? Well Ireland prove giant-killers, as Greece did in
:45:22. > :45:32.Portugal? Will Germany take the next steps? No nation has ever won
:45:32. > :46:03.
:46:03. > :46:09.three major football competitions Ladies and gentlemen, please
:46:09. > :46:19.welcome their Uefa president, and the leading scorer end European
:46:19. > :46:20.
:46:20. > :46:28.Championship finals, Michel Platini, It is almost time for the main
:46:28. > :46:33.event of the evening - the draw itself. But please thank me in
:46:33. > :46:43.joining our -- please join me in thanking our special guests he run
:46:43. > :46:47.
:46:47. > :46:57.the stage tonight. Let's look at the countries and the players who
:46:57. > :47:07.
:47:07. > :47:17.could be joining our wall of Holland are the lowest ranked team
:47:17. > :47:24.
:47:24. > :47:34.here. -- Poland. Croatian are in Pot 3 after qualifying with a play-
:47:34. > :47:40.
:47:40. > :47:50.off win against Turkey. -- Croatia. The Czech Republic are the lowest
:47:50. > :47:52.
:47:52. > :47:56.ranked side to qualify. For England, Rooney's suspension appeal next
:47:56. > :48:02.week will be absolutely crucial. They will be expected to reach the
:48:02. > :48:11.quarters. France have work to do to repair that tattered image caused
:48:11. > :48:21.by the World Cup last year in South Africa. An outstanding, team, the
:48:21. > :48:33.
:48:33. > :48:38.Germans. The Republic of Ireland that their first competition since
:48:38. > :48:48.1988, when they drew with Russia. Italy have all we conceded two
:48:48. > :48:55.
:48:55. > :49:00.goals in qualifying. -- only They have reached the last eight of
:49:00. > :49:10.the last five caps might euros. De Portugal meet -- beat Spain in a
:49:10. > :49:11.
:49:11. > :49:21.friendly last year. Russia are dark horses. It is difficult to beat
:49:21. > :49:25.
:49:25. > :49:30.them. The reigning world and European champions - Spain. Sweden,
:49:30. > :49:40.their fifth finals in the last six. They have not won and knockout game
:49:40. > :49:41.
:49:41. > :49:51.To assist with the formalities of the draw, we have four of our
:49:51. > :49:54.
:49:54. > :50:02.distinguished guests. To oversee proceedings, please welcome our
:50:03. > :50:09.General Secretary, Gianni Infantino. He will explain how it all works
:50:09. > :50:15.and introduce a video, I think. Welcome and good evening, ladies
:50:15. > :50:25.and gentlemen. I am delighted to be in your company tonight for this
:50:25. > :50:28.
:50:28. > :50:32.Before we start, I would like to say a few words in tribute to a
:50:33. > :50:36.member of a footballing family that we have sadly lost this week. Gary
:50:36. > :50:41.Speed was one of the great ambassadors of our game, both as a
:50:41. > :50:45.player and, more recently, as the coach of the Welsh national team.
:50:45. > :50:52.In the qualifying phase of this very tournament, he transformed the
:50:52. > :50:57.fortunes of his country. Gary was one of the most popular characters
:50:57. > :51:06.in the game and he will be missed by all who knew him, and many who
:51:06. > :51:10.knew of him. OK, we have a draw to complete. First of all I would like
:51:10. > :51:14.to congratulate the 16 teams who have made it through to the final
:51:14. > :51:21.tournament. We're now looking forward to seeing more of that
:51:21. > :51:27.entertainment and passion when the best national teams of Europe take
:51:27. > :51:35.on the centre stage in the summer of 2012. Now let us move on with
:51:35. > :51:42.the technical explanation of the draw procedure.
:51:42. > :51:51.Sir 16 teams will participate in the final round of the competition
:51:51. > :51:55.was up two host associations, Poland and Ukraine, and the 14
:51:55. > :51:59.qualified teams. The qualified teams are qualified on the basis of
:51:59. > :52:09.the Uefa national team ranking. This determines their allocation
:52:09. > :52:10.
:52:10. > :52:17.from pots 1-4. Pot 1 will contain the hosts, Poland and Ukraine,
:52:17. > :52:24.Spain and the Netherlands, the team with the best coefficient and
:52:24. > :52:31.seeded as 4th. The rest of the teams are allocated in descending
:52:31. > :52:39.order from Pot 2 to Port four. As hosts, Poland and Ukraine are
:52:39. > :52:41.automatically placed as top seeds. Poland will be in Group A and
:52:41. > :52:47.Ukraine will be in Group D. Spain Ukraine will be in Group D. Spain
:52:47. > :52:57.and the Netherlands will be placed in the first position in Groups B
:52:57. > :53:01.
:53:01. > :53:08.and C. Pot a to pot de will determine the remaining positions
:53:08. > :53:14.in each group. From Port four, a team will be allocated to each
:53:14. > :53:18.group consecutively from Group A to Group D. The first team from Port
:53:18. > :53:28.four is placed in Group A, with its position being determined by the
:53:28. > :53:31.
:53:31. > :53:41.ball drawn from pot a. The same procedure is repeated for
:53:41. > :53:43.
:53:43. > :53:48.positioning all teams from Port four in two groups C and D. -- into
:53:48. > :53:54.a groups. The draw is completed when all the teams from Pot 2 have
:53:54. > :54:04.been drawn and positioned in each group. For each team, the group and
:54:04. > :54:20.
:54:20. > :54:24.position will determine the order Here we got, then. At last we come
:54:25. > :54:32.to it. I hope you have listened carefully to the technical
:54:32. > :54:40.explanation because I am not going to repeat it! What I can repeat is
:54:40. > :54:46.that, as you have seen, Poland, the World Cup bronze medallists of 1974
:54:46. > :54:56.and 1982, is already placed in Group A in position one. So we have
:54:56. > :55:05.to say good luck to our Polish friends. The second thing is
:55:05. > :55:15.Ukraine is in Group D in position one. They were World Cup quarter-
:55:15. > :55:15.
:55:15. > :55:25.finalists in 2006. Good luck also to the Ukrainians and their coach.
:55:25. > :55:27.
:55:27. > :55:37.Now we can start with Mark Bunn bass -- Marco van Basten. I can
:55:37. > :55:46.
:55:46. > :55:56.already see that Vicente del Bosque was nervous. The first one butt the
:55:56. > :56:25.
:56:25. > :56:31.Netherlands -- the first one... Now the second one, which will be...
:56:31. > :56:41.Spain. A have won 42 of their last 45
:56:41. > :56:46.
:56:47. > :56:56.competitive matches. -- they have They will be placed in grew at sea.
:56:57. > :57:10.
:57:10. > :57:17.-- Group C. Now we have Pot 4. Just the second.
:57:18. > :57:25.We are now choosing the team who will play against Poland in Group A.
:57:25. > :57:33.I think Ireland would quite fancy to be in the script.
:57:33. > :57:43.Czech Republic. The runners-up of the Euro 1996 and the semi-
:57:43. > :57:44.
:57:44. > :57:49.finalists in 2004. They will be placed in Group A, against Poland.
:57:49. > :57:59.A bit inconsistent, the Czech Republic. They do not score enough
:57:59. > :58:21.
:58:21. > :58:29.goals. Position A 4 for the Czech Republic.
:58:29. > :58:39.Now we will find out who will play Holland.
:58:39. > :58:45.
:58:45. > :58:55.Denmark will play the Netherlands. The Danish were the winners in 1992.
:58:55. > :58:55.
:58:55. > :59:41.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:59:41. > :59:51.In Group D butt B 2. in Spain in Group C. Now it is the
:59:51. > :00:27.
:00:27. > :00:35.winner of the euro. France won the euro in 2000 with Zinedine Zidane.
:00:35. > :00:41.And also in 1984 with top-scorer Michel Platini with nine goals.
:00:41. > :00:49.France will play Ukraine in Group D. They finished bottom of their group
:00:49. > :00:59.in their last two major finals. They have got good players, though.
:00:59. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:19.Ukraine will have massive home forgot the Republic of Ireland. We
:01:19. > :01:19.
:01:19. > :02:16.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:02:16. > :02:26.where we have Croatia, Greece, through. They finished top of their
:02:26. > :02:39.
:02:39. > :02:49.group. A bit of a lack of pace here against Greece. Greece like to play
:02:49. > :03:11.
:03:11. > :03:18.Portugal, the runner of of Euro 2004. 7th in the world, that is
:03:18. > :03:28.higher than Italy, Russia, Croatia and Greece. Their new manager took
:03:28. > :03:35.
:03:35. > :03:45.over after a disastrous start and Denmark finished three points above
:03:45. > :03:45.
:03:45. > :04:33.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:04:33. > :04:43.Spain, and the Republic of Ireland. Hosts, which position? Positions
:04:43. > :05:08.
:05:08. > :05:18.opening game, Ireland, against a team yet to come out. It is Sweden,
:05:18. > :05:47.
:05:47. > :05:57.Kiev. The Irish opening game will be against Croatia in Donetsk on
:05:57. > :06:28.
:06:28. > :06:38.most recent meeting with Croatia England came out with Poland in the
:06:38. > :06:56.
:06:56. > :07:06.Russia will be very happy, that's for sure. Not since France and 84
:07:06. > :07:41.
:07:41. > :07:51.has a team come out of Group and opening game will be in Lviv
:07:51. > :08:15.
:08:15. > :08:21.Portugal and Germany. They've won 13 of their last 14 championship
:08:21. > :08:31.games. Most of the team who starred at the World Cup 2010 will be there
:08:31. > :08:40.
:08:40. > :08:45.here is happy as well. England come out in Group C, that's the group
:08:45. > :08:55.with Ireland and Croatia. The first game will be against Spain in the
:08:55. > :08:55.
:08:55. > :09:38.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds
:09:38. > :09:48.go in with Spain, the Republic of Ireland. Giovanni Trapattoni gets a
:09:48. > :10:03.
:10:03. > :10:13.of these gains in terms of the schedule will need to be confirmed
:10:13. > :10:29.
:10:29. > :10:39.in the next couple of hours. Kick position. -- Italy's position.
:10:39. > :10:54.
:10:54. > :11:03.opening game will be against France. The last time England beat France
:11:03. > :11:09.was in 1997, Alan Shearer's late winner decided the game. 1966 in
:11:09. > :11:19.the World Cup, England beat them 2- 0. The next game will be Sweden in
:11:19. > :11:27.Kiev. One win in 43 years against Sweden, never beaten them in
:11:27. > :11:33.official competition. The last game will be against Ukraine in Donetsk.
:11:33. > :11:43.Two gains in Donetsk Cup. It will be a Ukraine a stronghold. They
:11:43. > :12:02.
:12:02. > :12:12.first Secretary General and our same group with Italy and Spain and
:12:12. > :12:13.
:12:13. > :12:23.Croatia. For England, it is France, Let's take a look at the complete
:12:23. > :12:45.
:12:45. > :12:50.That is almost it from here in Kiev. I'm sure you will need some time to
:12:50. > :12:57.digest those fabulous matches. We wish everyone good luck next summer.
:12:57. > :13:01.Before we go, it remains far as to thank all of our guests here to die
:13:01. > :13:06.to -- tonight. We are really grateful that you have been with us
:13:06. > :13:16.tonight. We have another performance for you. This is one of
:13:16. > :13:16.
:13:16. > :13:20.the official songs of UEFA Euro That is just about it from us as we
:13:20. > :13:28.are brought into the final song. It's England against France, Sweden
:13:28. > :13:38.and Ukraine. It's Ireland against Italy, Spain and Croatia. That is
:13:38. > :13:46.
:13:46. > :13:51.just about it from us in Kiev Much to Mark Lawrenson's
:13:51. > :13:56.disappointment, we are going to opt out of that song. It was
:13:56. > :14:02.entertaining. Your first thoughts. As far as Ireland are concerned,
:14:02. > :14:07.very tough. Group A macro would have been the group to be in.
:14:07. > :14:17.England is tough but certainly winnable. There they are, the four
:14:17. > :14:36.
:14:36. > :14:41.Group C is almost the group of debt. What do you make of England's
:14:41. > :14:46.chances in that group? Ukraine, Shevchenko was still there star man.
:14:46. > :14:52.We know about Sweden, we played them recently. The French are re-
:14:52. > :14:57.emerging and will fancy their chances also. Thank God we are not
:14:57. > :15:01.in Group B. That looks a tough in Group B. That looks a tough
:15:01. > :15:04.proposition. Denmark not having much hope in that group. It's going
:15:04. > :15:09.to be tough for the Republic of Ireland. For tough for England
:15:09. > :15:13.supporters. They are going to have to go to the Ukraine. For the
:15:13. > :15:21.supporters, that is the worst supporters, that is the worst
:15:21. > :15:25.We look forward to it, don't we? look forward to it more than the
:15:25. > :15:30.draw. We just about kept him awake through the draw. We've done all
:15:30. > :15:35.right, England are OK. There is more reaction to the draw on
:15:35. > :15:38.Football Focus tomorrow. Dan is in the company of Rafa Benitez, Steve
:15:38. > :15:48.Staunton and John Hartson, who will be paying tribute to his friend,
:15:48. > :16:03.
:16:03. > :16:07.That leaves just time to thank Mark Lawrenson and Martin Keown for