Euro 2016: Qualifying Fixtures, Live Stream Info and Predictions

Fans all across Europe are getting ready for international football to return, with the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016 set to kick off on Sunday. The race for the final tournament in France will be unlike anything we've seen before, as UEFA have reworked the entire tournament format.

The number of nations that will participate has been bumped to 24 (previously 16), and as a result, the battle for possession within each group will be a lot fiercer and less top-heavy.

Hosts France have already qualified, and the rest of the continent will start their bids to join them this weekend. Here's the full fixture list for Matchday 1:

Date	Group	Home	Away	Live Stream
7 September	D	Georgia	Ireland	WatchESPN/Sky Go
7 September	D	Germany	Scotland	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
7 September	D	Gibraltar	Poland	FoxSoccer 2Go/Sky Go
7 September	F	Hungary	Northern Ireland	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
7 September	F	Faroe Islands	Finland	WatchESPN/Sky Go
7 September	F	Greece	Romania	WatchESPN/Sky Go
7 September	I	Denmark	Armenia	WatchESPN/Sky Go
7 September	I	Portugal	Albania	WatchESPN/Sky Go
8 September	C	Luxembourg	Belarus	Sky Go
8 September	C	Spain	Macedonia	WatchESPN/Sky Go
8 September	C	Ukraine	Slovakia	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
8 September	E	Estonia	Slovenia	WatchESPN/Sky Go
8 September	E	San Marino	Lithuania	Sky Go
8 September	E	Switzerland	England	Fox Soccer 2Go/ITV Player
8 September	G	Russia	Liechtenstein	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
8 September	G	Austria	Sweden	WatchESPN/Sky Go
8 September	G	Montenegro	Moldova	WatchESPN/Sky Go
9 September	A	Kazakhstan	Latvia	WatchESPN/Sky Go
9 September	A	Czech Republic	Netherlands	WatchESPN/ITV Player
9 September	A	Iceland	Turkey	WatchESPN/Sky Go
9 September	B	Andorra	Wales	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
9 September	B	Bosia-Herzegovina	Cyprus	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go
MOVED	B	Israel	Belgium	MOVED
9 September	H	Azerbaijan	Bulgaria	WatchESPN/Sky Go
9 September	H	Croatia	Malta	WatchESPN/Sky Go
9 September	H	Norway	Italy	Fox Soccer 2Go/Sky Go

New Format Will Impact Top Teams

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

UEFA's decision to change the number of teams to partake in the final tournament was made with an eye on the quality of play during the qualifying stages, giving smaller teams a better chance to advance.

Instead, it will likely be the top teams who will be affected the most. After all, a top-two finish will guarantee any team a trip to France, with the best third-placed team joining them and the rest of the third-placed teams entering a play-off.

Add seeding to the mix, and at least on paper, it seems almost impossible for any of the top teams not to at least finish in the top three.  The question is how this new format will impact the international commitments of top players, and how seriously the best teams will take the process.

Fabrizio Giovannozzi/Associated Press

If someone like Mesut Ozil or Eden Hazard picks up a knock during Premier League competition, will he risk further injury knowing his team can realistically lose half of their matches and still make the final tournament?

There's little doubt the new format is a blessing for some of the smaller teams, and compared to previous years, group play will be more exciting until the final day. It doesn't matter if a top team leads the pool by eight points—the weaker teams might still qualify.

But, as reported by Inside World Football's Lee Wellings, the new format seems to favour bigger teams even more:

"

The perfect finals format has been scrapped by UEFA. The 16 team tournament has produced the highest quality of football over the course of a tournament finals. Better even than the World Cup where weak nations have more chance of qualifying.

Two through two out meant every result seemed to matter. Good nations sometimes failed to qualify but overall 16 was enough for the wheat to participate, and the chaff to disappear. Or at least it was.

Now we have 'Le 24'. It might be harder for good teams NOT to qualify. What's the point?  

"

It will be interesting to see how the big teams approach their opening fixtures, and don't be surprised to see more and more top players skip international duties as the qualifying stages progress.

Expect a Spanish Statement

Czarek Sokolowski/Associated Press

No team in football needs a big statement win more than Spain this weekend. The 2014 World Cup was an unmitigated disaster, and a qualification campaign filled with struggles would only alienate the fans even further.

Several veteran contributors have said goodbye to La Roja, and as shared by ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan, Andres Iniesta will not be suiting up for the reigning champions due to injury:

Iniesta's injury is a blessing in disguise. The Chelsea tandem of Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa is in sensational form, and without Iniesta on the pitch, the former will likely be handed control over the squad.

Calls for Spain to start over and replace the golden generation are exaggerated—the team needs to evolve and blend the veteran stars with the new talent.

Macedonia have a solid squad, but following the retirement of Goran Pandev, they no longer have the star power to make the difference in a tight match. Playing in Spain on Monday night, the hosts should lay siege on the Macedonian goal early and often, restoring the fans' faith in the team's chances to bounce back from a dreadful summer.