Don't know about you but part of the appeal of the European Championship for me has always been that it's been a compact and straightforward tournament; 16 teams in four groups of four, top two through to the quarter finals, then semis and final, with all 31 matches spread out and the whole thing done and dusted in three weeks.
However, that of course changes this time around with the first Euros to comprise 24 teams, which means an extra week, an extra 20 matches - and a fortnight-long first round stage which will only knock out a third of the teams in the tournament.
I didn't agree with the expansion when it was made and I don't agree with it now, particularly because it was introduced for anything but footballing reasons; the Scottish and Irish FAs proposed it to maximise their chances of qualifying, the vast majority of UEFA members voted it in to maximise their chances of qualifying, and Michel Platini gleefully accepted the decision to maximise his chances of being retained as UEFA's President.
Nevertheless, the bigger tournament is here now - but will it be able to maintain the quality, interest and elite status of previous Euros when it comprises 43% of all the nations in UEFA full stop?
When the World Cup expanded to 24 teams in 1982, it did make for a better tournament because the extra nations from the likes of Africa and the Americas were strong enough to compete with more illustrious opponents, but does the same strength in depth exist within European nations football?
We won't fully know, of course, until the championship is up and running, but perhaps the key lies in the performances of the eight teams in France who would not have qualified had it still been a 16 team competition, who - if you judge it on the eight teams with the poorest qualifying record - are:
Ukraine
Sweden
Republic of Ireland
Hungary
Turkey
Croatia
Albania
Wales
Also, as mentioned above, with so many games in the first round eliminating so few teams - with the added challenge of working out which third-placed finishers will qualify and which knockout tie each will play in - will the tournament become bogged down at an early stage with dull, cagey matches between the lower status teams anxious to keep themselves in the running when the groups get decided?
Any thoughts?
However, that of course changes this time around with the first Euros to comprise 24 teams, which means an extra week, an extra 20 matches - and a fortnight-long first round stage which will only knock out a third of the teams in the tournament.
I didn't agree with the expansion when it was made and I don't agree with it now, particularly because it was introduced for anything but footballing reasons; the Scottish and Irish FAs proposed it to maximise their chances of qualifying, the vast majority of UEFA members voted it in to maximise their chances of qualifying, and Michel Platini gleefully accepted the decision to maximise his chances of being retained as UEFA's President.
Nevertheless, the bigger tournament is here now - but will it be able to maintain the quality, interest and elite status of previous Euros when it comprises 43% of all the nations in UEFA full stop?
When the World Cup expanded to 24 teams in 1982, it did make for a better tournament because the extra nations from the likes of Africa and the Americas were strong enough to compete with more illustrious opponents, but does the same strength in depth exist within European nations football?
We won't fully know, of course, until the championship is up and running, but perhaps the key lies in the performances of the eight teams in France who would not have qualified had it still been a 16 team competition, who - if you judge it on the eight teams with the poorest qualifying record - are:
Ukraine
Sweden
Republic of Ireland
Hungary
Turkey
Croatia
Albania
Wales
Also, as mentioned above, with so many games in the first round eliminating so few teams - with the added challenge of working out which third-placed finishers will qualify and which knockout tie each will play in - will the tournament become bogged down at an early stage with dull, cagey matches between the lower status teams anxious to keep themselves in the running when the groups get decided?
Any thoughts?



