Euro 2024 best third-place teams in group phase: Points gained by nations behind top two who managed to qualify for knockouts

Brad Cox

Euro 2024 best third-place teams in group phase: Points gained by nations behind top two who managed to qualify for knockouts image

The 2024 European Championship in Germany is now heading firmly towards the knockout stages.

The groups, which were drawn back in December of 2023, saw each team play one game against the other three in their pool. This is where they could collect points for wins and draws.

The top two teams from each group qualify automatically for the Round of 16, with the best four third-placed teams also making the first knockout phase. That means there was plenty to play for in these opening couple of weeks, even for nations who failed to win either of their opening matches.

So, who will go through as one of these top four third-place sides? What tie-breakers are used if these teams have the same points? The Sporting News explains how it is decided which "best" third-place nations will reach the knockout stage.

MORE: Euro 2024 schedule and results, updated LIVE | Who will win Euro 2024? Latest odds and predictions | How to watch all the Euro 2024 action 

Euro 2024 best third-place teams in group phase: How many go through to knockouts?

At the 2024 European Championship, there are six groups consisting of four teams in each. These were drawn back in December 2023.

The top two teams from each group automatically advance to the Round of 16. That leaves four spots, which are filled by the best third-placed teams, giving us the 16 nations for the first phase of the knockouts.

But how are those best third-place teams decided?

Euro 2024 best third-place teams in group phase: Updated standings

This is the final table for the best third-place teams at the tournament.

Correct as of June 26

PosTeamGPPtsW-D-LGD
1.Netherlands341-1-10
2.Georgia341-1-10
3.Slovakia341-1-10
4.Slovenia330-3-00

It is also worth stating that, due to results on June 24, it was confirmed that EnglandFrance, and the Netherlands were through to the next round. That's because those three teams each had four points, meaning that, regardless of their own results on Matchday 3, they will all be one of the four best third-place teams.

France have since qualified for the Round of 16 as runners-up from Group D, while England finished top of Group C.

Ukraine earned four points in Group E, but they finished bottom of that pool based on goal difference, so they missed out on the chance of claiming a best third-place spot despite earning more points than Slovenia and Hungary. They are the first side in European Championship history to finish bottom of a group after earning as many points.

How many points did teams need to qualify for Euro 2024 Round of 16 from third place in their group?

UEFA introduced this format for Euro 2016 and retained it for the last Euros three years ago.

At each of those tournaments, four points was enough to send teams through to the knockouts if they missed out on a top-two spot in their group. That was the same in 2024 for the Netherlands, Georgia, and Slovakia.

Sometimes, even less is enough. At Euro 2020, Ukraine scraped through with three points; at Euro 2016, Northern Ireland and Portugal — who went on to win the trophy — also progressed after collecting just three points from three group games. This year, Slovenia went through despite only earning three points.

Cristiano Ronaldo
(Getty Images)

Tie-breakers for third-place teams at Euro 2024: How are nations ranked?

The third-placed teams from the six groups were organized into a separate table to determine which four teams would advance to the knockout stage. Since these teams hadn't played against each other, their rankings were decided based on the following criteria:

  1. Points
  2. Goal difference
  3. Goals scored
  4. Wins
  5. Disciplinary points
  6. European Qualifiers ranking

When does the Euro 2024 knockout phase start?

The Round of 16 at Euro 2024 begins on Saturday, June 29. The tournament then progresses in a single-elimination format through to the final on July 14.

StageDateTime
(Local, CEST)
Match
R16 #1Saturday, June 29, 20246 p.m.Switzerland vs. Italy
R16 #2Saturday, June 29, 20249 p.m.Germany vs. Germany
R16 #3Sunday, June 30, 20246 p.m.England vs. Slovakia
R16 #4Sunday, June 30, 20249 p.m.Spain vs. Georgia
R16 #5Monday, July 1, 20246 p.m.France vs. Belgium
R16 #6Monday, July 1, 20249 p.m.Portugal vs. Slovenia
R16 #7Tuesday, July 2, 20246 p.m.Romania vs. Netherlands
R16 #8Tuesday, July 2, 20249 p.m.Austria vs. Turkey

Quarterfinals

StageDateTime
(Local, CEST)
Match
QF #1Friday, July 5, 20246 p.m.Winner of Match 39 vs. Winner of Match 37 
QF #2Friday, July 5, 20249 p.m.Winner of Match 41 vs. Winner of Match 42
QF #3Saturday, July 6, 20246 p.m.Winner of Match 40 vs. Winner of Match 38
QF #4Saturday, July 6, 20249 p.m.Winner of Match 43 vs. Winner of Match 44

Semifinals

StageDateTime
(Local, CEST)
Match
SF #1Tuesday, July 9, 20249 p.m.Winner of Match 45 vs. Winner of Match 46
SF #2Wednesday, July 10, 20249 p.m.Winner of Match 47 vs. Winner of Match 48

Final

DateTime
(Local, CEST)
Match
Sunday, July 14, 20249 p.m.Winner of Match 49 vs. Winner of Match 50

Brad Cox

Brad Cox Photo

Brad is a content producer for The Sporting News and has previously worked for the likes of Squawka and The Athletic. His career highlight to date is reporting from the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final in Paris.