The Republic of Ireland will be the top seeded team in their Euro 2004 qualifying group, it was announced by UEFA today. The seedings are based on the qualifying results for Euro 2000 and next year's World Cup. World and European champions France are overall number one seeds, while England, Holland, and Scotland are all only seeded in the second grouping of teams.
The qualifying process will be made up of ten groups of five teams - the group winners will qualify automatically while the runners-up will be forced into home and away playoffs. UEFA will hold the draw for the qualifying matches on 25 January next year in Porto. Portugal have already qualified for the championships as hosts.
Seeded nations (with points earned based on recent results)
1. France 2,100, 2. Sweden 2,667, 3. Spain 2,563, 4. Czech Republic 2,500, 5. Germany 2,250, 6. Republic of Ireland 2,222, 7. Romania 2,222, 8. Italy 2,188, 9. Belgium 2,125, 10. Turkey 2,111, 11. Russia 2,100, 12. Croatia 2,063, 13. Denmark 2,000, 14. Netherlands 2,000, 15. Yugoslavia 2,000, 16. Poland 1,889, 17. England 1,875, 18. Slovenia 1,850, 19. Ukraine 1,850, 20. Scotland 1,833
Filed by Greg McKevitt
