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The
UEFA EURO 2004 final tournament, hosted
by Portugal, will be played according
to the Official Regulations of the
UEFA European Football Championship.
Everything from kits to the playing
system to camera positions within
the stadium are governed by the regulations.
Playing
System
Regarding the playing system - as
per Article 6 of the regulations -
here are some reminders of how groups
and matches will be decided in the
competition. The group matches shall
be played using a league system, with
each country meeting all of the other
countries in its group in a single
match.
The
following points system shall apply:
three points for a win, one point
for a draw, and no points for defeat.
If
two or more teams finish equal on
points after all the group matches
have been played, the following criteria
shall be applied to determine the
ranking:
1. Number of points obtained in the
matches between the teams in question;
2. Goal difference resulting from
the matches between the teams in question;
3. Number of goals scored in the matches
between the teams in question (if
more than two teams finish equal on
points);
4. Goal difference in all the group
matches
5. Number of goals scored in all the
group matches;
6. Coefficient of points from the
last two qualifying competitions for
the final rounds of the 2000/02 FIFA
World Cup and 2002/04 UEFA European
Football Championship (points gained
divided by the number of matches played);
Fair Play conduct of the teams (in
the final tournament);
A drawing of lots.
Additionally,
if two teams meeting in one of the
last round of group matches have the
same number of points, the same goal
difference and the same number of
goals, and if this match stands at
a draw at the end of normal time,
the ranking of these two teams will
be determined by kicks from the penalty
mark (Article 14), rather than the
criteria outlined above.
Quarter-finals
The winners and runners-up in each
group shall play the quarter-finals
over one match, as per the following
ranking order: . B1-A2 . C1-D2 . B2-A1
. D1-C2 If, at the end of normal time,
a quarter-final match ends in a draw,
extra time shall be played until a
deciding goal is scored ("golden goal").
This period of extra time shall, however,
not exceed 2 x 15 minutes. If a deciding
goal is not scored by the end of this
period of extra time, the winning
team shall be determined by kicks
from the penalty mark as per Article
14.
Semi-Finals
The four winners of the quarter-finals
shall play the semi-finals over one
match, as per the following order:
. Winners of B1-A2 - Winners of D1-C2
. Winners of C1-D2 - Winners of B2-A1
If, upon completion of the statutory
playing time, a semi-final match ends
in a draw, the same system shall apply
as in the quarter-finals.
The
Final
The winners of the semi-finals shall
contest the final. If, upon completion
of the statutory playing time, the
final ends in a draw, the same system
shall apply as in the quarter-finals.
Penalties
Procedure
If kicks from the penalty mark are
required to determine the team to
qualify or the winners of a match,
the referee shall choose the goal
at which all of the kicks shall be
taken. He shall toss a coin, and the
team whose captain wins the toss shall
take the first kick. Penalties are
taken alternately.
If,
before both teams have taken five
kicks, one has scored more goals than
the other could, even if it were to
complete its five kicks, the taking
of kicks shall cease.
If,
after both teams have taken five kicks,
both have scored the same number of
goals or have not scored any goals,
the taking of kicks shall continue,
in the same order, until such time
as both have taken an equal number
of kicks (not necessarily five more
kicks) and one team has scored one
goal more than the other.
Who
is allowed to take the penalties?
Generally, only the players who are
on the field of play at the end of
the match, which shall mean at the
end of extra time in so far as a match
in which extra time is authorised
is concerned shall take part in the
taking of the kicks.
However,
provided that his team has not already
made use of the maximum number of
substitutes permitted by the rules
of the competition under which the
match is played, a goalkeeper who
sustains an injury during the taking
of the kicks and who, because of the
injury, is unable to continue as goalkeeper,
may be replaced by a substitute.
Second
Kicks
Each kick shall be taken by a different
player, and only when all eligible
players of each team, including the
goalkeeper or the named substitute
by whom he was replaced have each
taken a kick, may a player of the
same team take a second kick.
Suspensions
A player who is ordered to leave the
pitch by the referee shall be suspended
for the next match in the competition.
In all cases, the Control and Disciplinary
Committee shall be entitled to increase
the punishment. Qualifying round Similarly,
regulations govern the qualifying
round and the playoffs, namely Article
6.
Following
the conclusion of the 2002 FIFA World
Cup finals, the UEFA Administration
decided the playing system and the
seeding procedure for the UEFA EURO
2004T qualifying round draw.
In
total, 50 teams divided into ten groups
of five participate in the qualifying
stage of the competition, with Portugal
automatically qualified for the finals
as tournament hosts.
Playing
System
The playing system for the qualifying
round follows the same procedures
as the final tournament group stage
with three points for a win, one for
a draw and none for a defeat, although
teams play each other on a home-and-away
basis, unlike the final tournament
when all matches are staged in Portugal.
If
two or more teams finish equal on
points after all the group matches
have been played, the following criteria
shall be applied to determine the
ranking: .
Number of points obtained in the matches
between the teams in question;
Goal difference resulting from the
matches between the teams in question;
Number of away goals scored in the
matches between the teams in question;
Results of all qualifying competition
matches: - goal difference - number
of goals - number of away goals;
Fair Play conduct of the teams in
question;
A drawing of lots.
Playoffs
Ten group winners automatically qualify
alongside Portugal for the finals.
The ten group runners-up will take
part in five playoffs on a home-and-away
basis according to the knockout system
described below. The five winners
of these playoffs will advance to
the final tournament.
Runners-up
Rankings
Should it be necessary to decide the
ranking of the group runners-up, only
their results against the teams in
first, third and fourth place in their
group will be taken into account,
with the following criteria applied:
Number of points obtained in the matches
against the teams in first, third
and fourth place in the group;
Goal
difference from these matches;
Number of goals scored in these matches;
.
Number of away goals in these matches;
.
Fair play conduct of the teams in
all group matches; .
Drawing of lots.
Playoff
Procedures
In matches played according to the
knockout system, each team plays the
same opponent twice, in home-and-away
matches. The team which scores the
greater aggregate of goals in the
two matches qualifies for the final
tournament. If the two teams score
the same number of goals over the
two legs of their tie, the team which
scores more away goals qualifies for
the final tournament.
If
this procedure does not produce a
result (ie. if the two teams score
the same number of goals at home and
away), extra time of 2 x 15 minutes
is played at the end of the second
leg. If during extra time, both teams
score the same number of goals, away
goals count double (ie. the visiting
team qualifies). If no goals are scored
during extra time, kicks from the
penalty mark (as per Article 14) determine
which team qualifies.
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