Euro 2012 finals nation map

By Stoyan Bojinov:One of the most anticipated and watched sporting events in the world, the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship kicked off late last week. Euro 2012 marks a milestone for first-time host countries Ukraine and Poland, and many are hoping that the soccer tournament brings prosperity and inspires hope in the debt-burdened continent.

UEFA president Michel Platini on Thursday told Ukraine it had a two-month deadline to make up lost time in preparations for co-hosting the 2012 European Championships with Poland."I said that in the coming two months, they have to show some strong signs that Ukraine will progress," former France star Platini said after meeting with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych."It's not an ultimatum," he said, adding that Yanukovych "knows that there is work to do but he gives all guarantees that the Euro 2012 will take place in the best conditions in Ukraine".

UEFA chief Michel Platini on Saturday said he hoped Euro 2012 co-host Ukraine would solve its deep political crisis, as the ex-Soviet nation braced for bitterly-contested presidential polls."Things haven't exactly been easy with regard to Ukraine for the past two years," Platini told reporters on the eve of the qualifying competition draw for the 2012 European championships in Warsaw, capital of Ukraine's fellow-host Poland."Between the financial crisis and the political problems in Ukraine, it's not been particularly simple.

With football one of the most talked-about sports, Twitter has become like an extra man to monitor when it comes to big tournaments like Euro 2012.But while teams like reigning champions Spain initially banned their players from using the popular micro-blogging site during the tournament in Poland and Ukraine, for the most part football federations are following the example of Italy."There's no ban," one official said. "It's just a question of common sense."What common sense means, though, depends on the country.

Ukraine's deputy prime minister may have a hard time moonlighting as a chauffeur in another life, after crashing into a police car while driving a bus in the western city of Lviv.Charged with overseeing the Euro-2012 football championships which Ukraine is organising with Poland, Deputy Prime Minister Boris Kolesnikov arrived in Lviv to examine buses manufactured by a local factory to be used during the matches.Minutes after taking the wheel for a spin around the area, Kolesnikov hit a police car parked nearby, dragging it some 20 metres (65 feet).

Italy are on the brink of qualifying for the Euro 2012 finals in Poland and Ukraine after maintaining their grip on Group C with a 3-0 win over Estonia here on Friday.Italy stayed five points clear of Slovenia, 2-0 winners in the Faroe Islands, with a game in hand, and need only win two of their last four matches to guarantee progress to the finals.Forwards Giuseppe Rossi, Antonio Cassano and Giampaolo Pazzini scored one each in what was a walk in the park for the Azzurri against poor opponents.

England will play Wales in their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign after the two sides were drawn together in Group G here on Sunday.They will be joined by Switzerland, Bulgaria and Montenegro who were also drawn in the five-team group at the ceremony in the Polish capital.England last played Wales in a World Cup qualifier in 2005, a tie they won 1-0 in Cardiff.The road to the Euro 2012 finals to be co-hosted by Poland and the Ukraine gets underway in September and runs through to October 2011.

On Friday the countdown will officially begin to soccer's Euro 2012 finals -- arguably the climax to the second biggest festival of football on the planet behind the World Cup.