European U21 Championship 2017: Dates, Schedule, Teams, Preview and More

The 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship kicks off on Friday with hosts Poland taking on Slovakia and defending champions Sweden facing England in Group A.

Sweden were surprise winners two years ago in the Czech Republic when they beat Portugal on penalties in the final, but they are unlikely to pull off another shock in 2017.

Spain are arguably the team to beat having won the tournament in 2013 and 2011, while Germany, Portugal, Italy and England will all be desperate to make it out of the group stage to the semi-finals.

The final will take place on Friday, June 30, at the Krakow Stadium in Krakow, Poland.

Here is what the groups look like, per UEFA:

The group winners and best runner-up will advance to the semi-finals, meaning there is little margin for error for the top teams.

A full schedule for the tournament can be found on the UEFA website.

Many of the players on show in Poland are already recognisable young stars from across Europe.

The likes of Serge Gnabry, who recently signed for Bayern Munich, AC Milan's Gianluigi Donnarumma, Real Madrid's Marco Asensio and Valencia's Joao Cancelo all played key roles for their clubs in 2016-17.

Spain have perhaps the biggest contingent of widely recognisable faces and proven stars. As well as Asensio, La Rojita's squad includes Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez, Arsenal's Hector Bellerin and Barcelona's Denis Suarez, among others:

It is little surprise then that Spain are seen by many as the favourites.

They are in a tough group, though, with Portugal, Serbia and Macedonia. The clash between Portugal and Spain on Tuesday, which could decide the Group B winners, looks set to be one of the games of the tournament.

There are also likely to be some less well-known youngsters who emerge from the 2017 tournament.

Such a huge stage presents a perfect opportunity for players to introduce themselves to the football world, if they can handle the pressure.

Previous players who have starred at the European Under-21 Championship include Manuel Neuer, Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti, Juan Mata and Luis Figo. 

The stars of the future will all be looking to prove themselves in Poland, and the quality on show should make for a fascinating tournament.