The opponents at EURO 2024 have been determined – now the national coach is called upon. The next few months will be stressful for Julian Nagelsmann. Here is the timetable until the tournament.
On Saturday evening (December 2nd, 2023), Julian Nagelsmann began the long journey home from Hamburg to Munich after his stressful European Championship day as a passenger with the hope of getting a little rest. The national coach is likely to give his national players sleepless nights with his change announcement.
“I have a clear opinion about all the players”said the 36-year-old after the draw for the group stage for the 2024 European Football Championship, which was very fortunate for him – for some people, the dream of a home tournament could suddenly be very far away in March.
Test matches
The national team will meet again for the first time after the turn of the year from March 18th to 26th. Then two test games are planned.
First in France and then against the Netherlands, Nagelsmann wants to make amends with the DFB selection for the sometimes desolate performances in November against Turkey (2:3) and in Vienna against Austria (0:2). The exact dates and venues have not yet been determined.
| Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
February 8th | Nations League 2024/25 draw | Paris |
end of March | European Championship test matches in France and against the Netherlands | Lyon/Frankfurt |
middle of May | Nomination for the European Championship squad | Frankfurt |
May 18th | Last Bundesliga matchday | |
25. May | DFB Cup final | Berlin |
End of May/beginning of June | Training camp with two test matches | open |
June 1st | Champions League final | London |
June 7th | Notification of the final European Championship squad to FIFA | Nyon |
June 9th | Latest move into the EM quarters | Herzogenaurach |
14th June | 1st European Championship group game against Scotland | Munich |
June 19th | 2nd European Championship group game against Hungary | Stuttgart |
23rd June | 3rd European Championship group game against Switzerland | Frankfurt |
June 29th to July 2nd | Possible European Championship round of 16 | |
5th/6th July | Possible European Championship quarter-finals | |
9/10 July | Possible European Championship semi-finals | Dortmund/Munich |
July 14th | Possible European Championship final | Berlin |
Squad announcement middle of May
A key point is the announcement of the European Championship squad, which is expected to take place around May 17, 2024, after the end of the Bundesliga season. The search for a location for the training camp, which will probably begin in the week after the DFB Cup final (May 25th), is in the final planning phase. Donaueschingen and a hotel near Weimar are considered options. Preparing for the European Championships in Herzogenaurach was probably just a quick mental game.
During the preparation there are still two test games for which opponents are now being sought. If possible, they should provide blueprints of the football culture of the first three European Championship opponents. The DFB is expected to announce these key points of the European Championship planning this year.
Nagelsmann and his players have to move into the European Championship quarters no later than five days before the first tournament game, i.e. on June 9th. This is what the UEFA regulations dictate. As in 2021 and 2022, the DFB stars will spend the summer in the so-called home ground of supplier Adidas in Herzogenaurach.
The measures
“There is no radical cure now that we leave ten players at home and invite ten new ones, but there will be some changes in the structure because we also have a changed national team in terms of self-image and in the way we perform.”said Nagelsmann.
The coaching team may also be rethinking the 4-2-2-2 tactic recently used, with which Nagelsmann caused a stir with Kai Havertz as a flying left full-back. “It will affect content areas, but also affect the structure a little bit”said the national coach.