Euro Cup 2012: Power Ranking Top Championship Contenders

Spain will attempt to defend their Euro Cup crown as one of the clear-cut favorites to win this tournament. They are loaded with talent and poised to repeat. 

These factors aside, that is not going to be an easy task. It never has been in this tournament. There have been nine different champions in 13 Euro Cups, and not once has the same country defended their title. 

With all of that in mind, let's take a look at the top contenders for this year. 

No. 1: Spain

The Spaniards are loaded. They just keep producing wave after wave of top-shelf talent, and they certainly have the results to back it up. 

They have been nearly unbeatable in tournaments the past few years—proving that they don't just have the players, but the system to put them all in place to use their talent. 

This led to them running off a perfect 8-0 record in the qualifying for the 2012 Euro Cup. 

However, they have not been as dominant in their recent friendlies. Spain has recent losses to Italy and England, and a draw to Costa Rica. 

This squad is not unbeatable, but if they bring their A game they will win. 

No. 2: Germany

Like Spain, Germany also ran off a perfect record in Euro Cup qualifiers, and they did it over 10 games. 

In those 10 games, they had a mind-boggling goal differential of plus-27. It is clear: this team is loaded and focused on adding some hardware. 

The scariest thing about all of this is that Germany is really just starting to scratch the surface of their potential. This is a young team, and players like Mesut Ozil, Thomas Mueller and Sami Khedira, among others, are just beginning to showcase what they are capable of. 

No. 3: France

The popular choice here is the Netherlands. They are coming off an impressive run to the World Cup finals. 

However, they have looked listless and without passion in recent outings. So I am going with the side that never hurts for passion. 

The French just have to make sure that passion is directed at their opponents. Infighting has derailed this team in recent tournaments, but the change in managers to Laurent Blanc from Raymond Domenech has done this side a world of good. 

France has looked great in recent play, and they are loaded with talent. They have an excellent shot to parlay that talent and momentum into a Euro Cup championship.