Eight teams are left in Euro 2020, with four more set to fall by the wayside by Saturday evening as the quarterfinals begin on Friday.
After three weeks of hopping across Europe like an American tourist on vacation, the tournament waves goodbye to its nomadic nature this week, as both the semifinals and the final will be held at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
The chances of it being a triumphal homecoming for the Three Lions rose exponentially after England defeated Germany 2-0 in the Round of 16 on Tuesday, beating its arch-rivals in the knockout stage of a major tournament for the first time since the 1966 World Cup final.
England's quest for a major tournament win in 55 years takes Gareth Southgate's team to Rome, where it will face Ukraine on Saturday evening in what is arguably the easier of the four quarterfinals to predict.
England is yet to concede a goal and produced its best performance of the tournament against Germany, while Ukraine defeated a 10-men Sweden 2-1 after 120 attritional minutes courtesy of a late goal from Artem Dovbyk.
Like Ukraine, Spain and Switzerland, who meet in the first quarterfinal in Saint Petersburg, also needed extra time to get past their respective Round of 16 assignments, but there was nothing attritional about their ties.
Spain conceded twice in the last five minutes against Croatia to throw away a 3-1 lead, before eventually winning 5-3 as Álvaro Morata rediscovered his goal-scoring form. Switzerland stood at the opposite end of the spectrum, needing two late goals to erase a 3-1 deficit against reigning world champions France, before prevailing in a penalty shootout.
Elsewhere, Belgium will be looking to live up to its status of No. 1-ranked team in the world, which it has held for almost four years, when it takes on Italy in Munich. It may, however, have to do so without two of its talismans as Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard were forced off with injuries during their team's 1-0 win over Portugal on Sunday.
The picture is rosier for Italy, which is set to welcome back veteran defender Giorgio Chiellini, who missed the Azzurri's last two games, including Saturday's 2-1 win over Austria in extra time.
Saturday's early quarterfinal tie is a meeting of dark horses, with Denmark facing the Czech Republic in Baku on Saturday.
After losing their first two games and experiencing the trauma of midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsing on the field following a cardiac arrest, the Danes have scored eight goals in their next two matches.
Their 4-0 trouncing of Wales last Saturday kept their hopes of repeating their fairy-tale triumph in 1992 alive.
Meanwhile, the Czechs burst the Netherlands' ballon in the Round of 16 with a convincing 2-0 win and will be looking to reach the semifinals for the first time since 2004.
Here's all you need to know to keep up with the action.
When Do Euro 2020 Quarterfinals Begin?
The quarterfinals get underway on Friday, July 2 when Switzerland takes on Spain. There are two games scheduled each day on Friday and Saturday, before three more days of rest ahead of the semifinals, which are held on July 6 and 7.
The final is scheduled for July 11.
How to Watch Euro 2020 on TV and Online
The quarterfinals are broadcast in the U.S. across ESPN and ABC, which, along with ESPN2, carried every game of the group stages.
Every game will be available for live stream on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Games will also be available via streaming services like fuboTV and Sling TV.
Euro 2020 quarterfinals TV schedule
All times ET
Friday, July 2
Game 1: Switzerland vs. Spain—12 p.m., ESPN
Game 2: Belgium vs. Italy—3 p.m., ESPN
Saturday, July 3
Game 3: Czech Republic vs. Denmark—12 p.m., ESPN
Game 4: Ukraine vs. England—3 p.m., ABC
The winners of Game 1 and Game 2 will meet in the first semifinal at 3 p.m. ET on July 6, and the winners of Game 3 and Game 4 are to meet in the second semifinal at 3 p.m. ET on July 7.
Euro 2020 odds
With pre-tournament favorites France no longer in the competition, England is now the team to beat in the eyes of the bookmakers. The Three Lions are 2-1 favorites with both William Hill and DraftKings, followed by Spain at 10-3 and Italy at 4-1.
Somewhat more surprisingly, Belgium is a 7-1 outsider, with Denmark a 10-1 dark horse. Switzerland and Czech Republic are both 25-1, with Ukraine a 33-1 long shot.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Dan Cancian is currently a reporter for Newsweek based in London, England. Prior to joining Newsweek in January 2018, he was a news and business reporter at International Business Times UK. Dan has also written for The Guardian and The Observer.
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