Final countdown begins as 16 finalists await Euro 2012 draw

The host nations, Poland and Ukraine, are seeded in Pot 1 and will be placed in Group A and Group D respectively. Defending champions Spain and the Netherlands make up the other two places in the top pot as they are the two highest ranking teams by Uefa's coefficient system. In a competition that England manager Fabio Capello describes as harder to win than the World Cup, the Three Lions are in Pot 2 alongside Germany, Italy and Russia. Capello told the FA's official website: "I think you need to avoid the first pot, so Spain and Holland. “After that there is also Portugal and France in the third and fourth pot, and these are the teams I would prefer to avoid in the group stage.” He added: "I think you need to also be careful with Ukraine and Poland, as they can improve a lot with home advantage. It is possible they could be the surprise of the tournament." Portugal are the leading side in Pot 3 where they are joined by Croatia, Greece and Sweden while two-time European champions France are placed in the final pot with Denmark, Czech Republic and the Republic of Ireland. Aside from the two host countries, the top 14 ranked teams in Europe have qualified for the finals, with the first match to be played in Warsaw on June 8. All teams will play group matches at two locations, while teams in the same group will not be able to meet again until the final in Kiev on July 1. Groups A (Warsaw and Wroclaw) and C (Gdansk and Poznan) will be based in Poland, and Groups B (Kharkiv and Lviv) and D (Kiev and Donetsk) in Ukraine. With the tournament split across a vast area of two countries, the teams will also discover the location of their matches next summer. The likes of the Netherlands and England have already chosen base camps in Poland so will be hoping to be drawn in Group A or Group C to avoid long trips to Ukraine – which has been criticised for its poor transport links – for their games. The teams that finish in the top two places in each group will progress to the quarter-finals.