FIFA Rankings: Euro 2012 Nations

The current (June 2012) FIFA Rankings of the Euro 2012 nations

GROUP A (29.25 avg)
13 - Russia
15 - Greece
27 - Czech Republic
62 - Poland

GROUP B (6.50 avg)
3 - Germany
4 - Netherlands
9 - Denmark
10 - Portugal

GROUP C (9.75 avg)
1 - Spain
8 - Croatia
12 - Italy
18 - Republic of Ireland

GROUP D (22.25 avg)
6 - England
14 - France
17 - Sweden
52 - Ukraine


UEFA Ranking
1 - Spain
2 - Germany
3 - Netherlands
4 - England

5 - Croatia
6 - Denmark
7 - Portugal
8 - Italy

9 - Russia
10 - France
11 - Greece
12 - Sweden

13 - Republic of Ireland
16 - Czech Republic
28 - Ukraine
32 - Poland

FIFA Rankings: Euro 2012 Groups

The current FIFA rankings of the Euro 2012 qualified nations.


AVG GROUP RANK - Group

5.75 - GROUP B
2 - Netherlands
3 - Germany
7 - Portugal
11 - Denmark

9.75 - GROUP C
1 - Spain
8 - Croatia
9 - Italy
21 - Republic of Ireland

23.25 - GROUP D
5 - England
15 - France
18 - Sweden
55 - Ukraine

31.25 - GROUP A
12 - Russia
14 - Greece
33 - Czech Republic
66 - Poland

Top Goal Scoring Midfielders in Euro 2012 Qualifying

Midfielders that scored 4 goals or more in Euro 2012 Qualifying.

G - Player (Country; Current Club)

6 - Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Armenia; Shakhtar Donetsk)
5 - Mesut Özil (Germany; Real Madrid)
5 - Konstantin Vassiljev (Estonia; Amkar Perm)
5 - Gevorg Ghazaryan (Armenia; Metalurh Donetsk)
4 - Nani (Portugal; Manchester United)
4 - Alan Dzagoev (Russia; CSKA Moscow)
4 - Niko Kranjčar (Croatia; Tottenham Hotspur)
4 - Arda Turan (Turkey; Atlético Madrid)
4 - Yossi Benayoun (Israel; Arsenal)
4 - David Silva (Spain; Manchester City)
4 - Aleksandrs Cauņa (Latvia; CSKA Moscow)
4 - Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland; FC Basel)
4 - Kasper Hämäläinen (Finland; Djurgården)
4 - Alexandr Suvorov (Moldova; Cracovia)

Euro 2012 Qualifying: Team Goal Statistics

Team Goal Statistics from the Euro 2012 Qualifying Stage.

Best Goals Scored Average 
3.7 - Netherlands (37)
3.4 - Germany (34)
3.3 - Spain (26)
3.1 - Sweden (31)
2.6 - Portugal (21)
2.2 - Armenia (22)
2.2 - Hungary (22)
2.1 - England (17)
2.1 - Belgium (21)
2.0 - Italy (20)

Best Goals Against Average
0.2 - Italy (2)
0.4 - Russia (4)
0.4 - France (4)
0.5 - Greece (5)
0.6 - England (5)
0.7 - Slovenia (7)
0.7 - Republic of Ireland (7)
0.7 - Germany (7)
0.7 - Croatia (7)
0.7 - Belarus (7)

Worst Goals Scored Average
0.0 - San Marino (0)
0.1 - Andorra (1)
0.3 - Luxembourg (3)
0.4 - Liechtenstein (3)
0.4 - Bulgaria (3)
0.4 - Malta (4)
0.5 - Lithuania (4)
0.6 - Faroe Islands (6)
0.6 - Kazakhstan (6)
0.7 - Slovakia (7)
0.7 - Georgia (7)
0.7 - Albania (7)

Worst Goals Against Average
5.3 - San Marino (53)
2.6 - Azerbaijan (26)
2.6 - Faroe Islands (26)
2.5 - Andorra (25)
2.5 - Cyprus (20)
2.4 - Kazakhstan (24)
2.1 - Liechtenstein (17)
2.1 - Luxembourg (21)
2.1 - Malta (21)




20+ Team Goals
37 - Netherlands
34 - Germany
31 - Sweden
26 - Spain
22 - Armenia
22 - Hungary
21 - Belgium
21 - Portugal
20 - Italy

5 or Less Team Goals
0 - San Marino
1 - Andorra
3 - Luxembourg
3 - Liechtenstein
3 - Bulgaria
4 - Malta
4 - Lithuania

Upsets - Euro 2012 Qualifying

Euro 2012 Qualifying Round upset wins and draws by nations at least 25 places lower in the FIFA rankings at the time of the game.

Upset Wins

106 - Liechtenstein (153) 2:0 Lithuania (47)
98 - Wales (117) 2:1 Montenegro (19)
89 - Armenia (105) 3:1 Slovakia (16)
81 - Azerbaijan (102) 1:0 Turkey (21)
72 - Wales (90) 2:0 Switzerland (18)
71 - Luxembourg (128) 2:1 Albania (57)
70 - Serbia (15) 1:3 Estonia (85)
64 - Georgia (72) 1:0 Croatia (8)
63 - Slovenia (23) 1:2 Estonia (86)
57 - France (21) 0:1 Belarus (78)
48 - Iceland (124) 1:0 Cyprus (76)
45 - Slovakia (26) 0:4 Armenia (71)
40 - Slovenia (19) 0:1 Northern Ireland (59)
38 - Moldova (89) 2:0 Finland (51)
36 - Albania (73) 1:0 Belarus (37)
35 - Faroe Islands (114) 2:0 Estonia (79)
35 - Bulgaria (55) 0:1 Wales (90)
30 - Bulgaria (43) 0:1 Montenegro (73)
27 - Hungary (45) 2:1 Sweden (18)
27 - Estonia (86) 4:1 Northern Ireland (59)



Upset Draws

104 - Malta (167) 1:1 Georgia (63)
98 - Greece (12) 1:1 Georgia (110)
93 - Faroe Islands (138) 1:1 Northern Ireland (45)
75 - Luxembourg (130) 0:0 Belarus (55)
75 - Azerbaijan (112) 1:1 Belgium (37)
72 - Georgia (110) 0:0 Israel (38)
70 - Latvia (84) 1:1 Greece (14)
63 - Lithuania (56) 0:0 Liechtenstein (119)
62 - Estonia (82) 1:1 Serbia (20)
55 - Portugal (8) 4:4 Cyprus (63)
55 - Kazakhstan (132) 0:0 Austria (77)
55 - Macedonia (94) 1:1 Slovakia (39)
45 - Hungary (27) 0:0 Finland (72)
44 - Austria (68) 0:0 Turkey (24)
42 - Armenia (65) 0:0 Russia (13)
39 - France (15) 0:0 Romania (54)
36 - Belarus (78) 0:0 Romania (42)
34 - England (6) 0:0 Montenegro (40)
34 - Belarus (53) 1:1 France (19)
32 - Northern Ireland (45) 0:0 Italy (13)
30 - Macedonia (66) 2:2 Armenia (96)
28 - Romania (42) 1:1 Albania (70)

Euro 2012 Qualifying Upsets

Euro 2012 Qualifying Round upset wins and draws by nations at least 25 places lower in the FIFA rankings at the time of the game. I'll update this post as the games are played.





Upset Wins

89 - Armenia (105) 3:1 Slovakia (16)
81 - Azerbaijan (102) 1:0 Turkey (21)

70 - Serbia (15) 1:3 Estonia (85)

57 - France (21) 0:1 Belarus (78)
40 - Slovenia (19) 0:1 Northern Ireland (59)
38 - Moldova (89) 2:0 Finland (51)
30 - Bulgaria (43) 0:1 Montenegro (73)


Upset Draws

98 - Greece (12) 1:1 Georgia (110)
93 - Faroe Islands (138) 1:1 Northern Ireland (45)
75 - Luxembourg (130) 0:0 Belarus (55)
72 - Georgia (110) 0:0 Israel (38)
55 - Portugal (8) 4:4 Cyprus (63)
36 - Belarus (78) 0:0 Romania (42)
34 - England (6) 0:0 Montenegro (40)

32 - Northern Ireland (45) 0:0 Italy (13)

30 - Macedonia (66) 2:2 Armenia (96)
28 - Romania (42) 1:1 Albania (70)

FIFA Ranking Analysis of Euro 2012 Qualifying Groups

Here's a brief FIFA ranking analysis of the EURO 2012 qualification draw.

When averaging the current FIFA rankings of the groups from top to bottom, England and Portugal's groups are definitely the toughest. This is due to the tough 'minnows' in those groups with the likes of Wales, Montenegro, Iceland, and Cyprus. These groups also have the closest rank difference between the top and bottom teams.

The toughest groups when averaging only the top three teams are Croatia and Italy's Groups. Croatia will have it tough with Greece and Israel to contend with, while Italy has been grouped with fellow world cup qualifiers, Serbia and Slovenia. The Italian group also has highest ranked 'fourth' team with a quality Northern Ireland team who could definitely cause problems for the top 3.



GROUP A
(6) Germany
(42) Turkey
(61) Austria
(66) Belgium
(114) Azerbaijan
(123) Kazakhstan

GROUP B
(13) Russia
(36) Slovakia
(37) Republic of Ireland
(64) Macedonia
(102) Armenia
(202) Andorra

GROUP C
(3) Italy
(19) Serbia
(33) Slovenia
(40) Northern Ireland
(104) Estonia
(118) Faroe Islands

GROUP D
(7) France
(38) Romania
(48) Bosnia-Herzegovina
(80) Belarus
(97) Albania
(124) Luxembourg

GROUP E
(2) Netherlands
(43) Sweden
(52) Hungary
(54) Finland
(96) Moldova
(203) San Marino

GROUP F
(11) Croatia
(12) Greece
(27) Israel
(49) Latvia
(122) Georgia
(144) Malta

GROUP G
(9) England
(18) Switzerland
(30) Bulgaria
(72) Montenegro
(76) Wales

GROUP H
(5) Portugal
(26) Denmark
(32) Norway
(68) Cyprus
(94) Iceland

GROUP I
(1) Spain
(25) Czech Republic
(46) Scotland
(62) Lithuania
(153) Liechtenstein

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIER
(24) Ukraine
(57) Poland


GROUP RANK AVERAGE
41.00 - GROUP G (England)
45.00 - GROUP H (Portugal)
52.83 - GROUP C (Italy)
57.40 - GROUP I (Spain)
60.83 - GROUP F (Croatia)
65.67 - GROUP D (France)
68.67 - GROUP A (Germany)
75.00 - GROUP E (Netherlands)
75.67 - GROUP B (Russia)

GROUP TOP 3 TEAMS - RANK AVERAGE
16.67 - GROUP F (Croatia, Greece, Israel)
18.33 - GROUP C (Italy, Serbia, Slovenia)
19.00 - GROUP G (England, Switzerland, Bulgaria)
21.00 - GROUP H (Portugal, Denmark, Norway)
24.00 - GROUP I (Spain, Czech Republic, Scotland)
28.67 - GROUP B (Russia, Slovakia, Republic of Ireland)
31.00 - GROUP D (France, Romania, Bosnia-Herzegovina)
32.33 - GROUP E (Netherlands, Sweden, Hungary)
36.33 - GROUP A (Germany, Turkey, Austria)

RANK DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TOP AND BOTTOM SEEDS IN EACH GROUP
67 - GROUP G (ENGLAND-WALES)
89 - GROUP H (PORTUGAL-ICELAND)
115 - GROUP C (ITALY-FAROE ISLANDS)
117 - GROUP A (GERMANY-KAZAKHSTAN)
117 - GROUP D (FRANCE-LUXEMBOURG)
133 - GROUP F (CROATIA-MALTA)
152 - GROUP I (SPAIN-LIECHTENSTEIN)
189 - GROUP B (RUSSIA-ANDORRA)
201 - GROUP E (NETHERLANDS-SAN MARINO)

GROUP WITH THE HIGHEST RANKED 'MINNOWS' (AVG. OF 2 LOWEST RANKED TEAMS)
74.00 - GROUP G (MONTENEGRO, WALES)
81.00 - GROUP H (CYPRUS, ICELAND)
107.50 - GROUP I (LITHUANIA, LIECHTENSTEIN)
110.50 - GROUP D (ALBANIA, LUXEMBOURG)
111.00 - GROUP C (ESTONIA, FAROE ISLANDS)
118.50 - GROUP A (AZERBAIJAN, KAZAKHSTAN)
133.00 - GROUP F (GEORGIA, MALTA)
149.50 - GROUP E (MOLDOVA, SAN MARINO)
152.00 - GROUP B (ARMENIA, ANDORRA)