UEFA EURO 2012™ qualifying draw procedure approved

The UEFA Executive Committee has approved the procedure for the UEFA EURO 2012™ qualifying competition draw in Warsaw, Poland, on 7 February 2010. The procedure was given the green light at the committee's meeting in Nyon on Monday and Tuesday.

Hosts qualify automatically
Fifty-one of the 53 UEFA member associations will take part in the qualifying draw, as the two UEFA EURO 2012™ host countries, Poland and Ukraine, qualify automatically for the final tournament.

Qualifying competition
The qualifying competition will comprise six groups of six teams (groups A-F) and three groups of five teams (groups G-I). Sides in each group will play one another on a home and away basis, with qualifying matches scheduled according to the international match calendar between September 2010 and November 2011. The nine winners and the best runner-up qualify directly for the final tournament. The eight remaining runners-up contest play-off matches.

Six pots
For the draw, the 51 teams are allocated to six pots. Pots 1 to 5 contain nine sides each and Pot 6 will have six teams. The sides are classified on the basis of the UEFA national team rankings on completion of the qualifying games for the 2010 FIFA World Cup (last match to be played on 18 November). The reigning European champions (Spain) are seeded in Pot 1.