Germany

The final Bundesliga matches of 2015 were played on December 20^th, but the German top-flight league won't reconvene until Friday, January 22^nd. That match, between Bayern Munich and Hamburger SV, will put an end to the Bundesliga's lengthy winter break-a rest period that is considerably longer than that of any other major European football league. The English Premier League hardly got any breaks at all, playing hard throughout the holidays to earn a week and a half's rest at the beginning of January. The Spanish La Liga, meanwhile, enjoyed a brief rest leading up to Christmas but resumed in time to play a round of matches in the final days of 2015.

For soccer fans, the Bundesliga break isn't ideal. Going a whole month without seeing your favorite team play-at a time of year when every other league is active-is a serious exercise in patience. For the players, though, there is a huge benefit to playing in the Bundesliga and getting the month-long break in the

The 2016 UEFA European Championship won't get underway until June 10^th of next year. As of early December, though, the group stage draws for the tournament are set. With 24 teams spread across six groups, which countries will rise and which will fall in the first round of this prestigious football tournament? Read on to check out our predictions for each of the six groups.

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The Group: A
The Teams: France, Romania, Albania, Switzerland
The Likely Outcome: France are the natural frontrunners here. In addition to being the tournament hosts, France are also the only soccer team in this group that have won a previous European Championship title-let alone two. France won in both 1984 (also at a tournament they hosted) and 2000 and have had a fairly solid year,

FIFA has been the subject of much controversy, with allegations of bribes and investigations of high-ranking officials tarnishing the integrity of the entire sport of football. Unsurprisingly, the global soccer organization is considering what has been dubbed "a very comprehensive reform package." What is surprising is that this "reform package" wouldn't just be bent on stopping corruption, but would also change the makeup of one of what is perhaps the world's biggest sporting event: the FIFA World Cup. Proposals for a 40 team World Cup have been discussed, but what would this mean?

A 40 Team World Cup?

According to a recent report from The Guardian, FIFA officials discussed a wide range of topics at their executive committee meeting on Thursday, December 3^rd, including the possibility of expanding the competing fields for future World Cup events to 40 teams. Currently, the final World Cup tournament

With the qualifiers done and the playoffs decided, the table is set for the 2016 UEFA European Championship. The tournament won't commence until June 10^th, which means we're still more than half a year away. However, at Soccer Box, we are ready to help football fans all around Europe to prepare for the big continental competition. We've begun stocking Euro 2016 jerseys for a range of different international football squads, from Germany and Spain to Belgium and Sweden. These are the official kits that your favorite international teams are going to be wearing at Euro next summer, and thanks to Soccer Box, you can get yours today!

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A Tournament Preview: Who Will Win and Who Might Surprise?



Now that the playoffs are over (with Ukraine, Sweden, Republic of

Of all of the groups in the qualifying competition for next year's European Championship in France, perhaps none were more competitive than Group D. Featuring a fierce competition between reigning World Cup champs Germany and an on-fire Poland national team-not to mention the two highest-scoring players in the entire qualifying competition-Group D was electrifying, but ultimately it was to be that Germany and Poland secure Euro 2016 spot.

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The Group Standings

Germany took the edge in the final group standings, finishing the qualifying competition with seven wins, one draw, and two losses-for a point total of 22. Poland, meanwhile, were one point behind, with fewer wins (6) and losses (1), but three draws.

The Republic of Ireland

After eight games we assess the situation and ask Can Poland top Euro 2016 Qualifying Group D? When Poland beat Germany in an early Euro 2016 qualifying match last October, the White Eagles took an unexpected lead in qualifying Group D. Germany had been the heavy favorites to dominate Group D-and indeed, the entire Euro 2016 tournament-thanks to their recent World Cup victory. But the German side's loss against Poland showed weakness, and gave fans in the Poland home shirt 2014 2015 hope that their soccer squad might be able to pull off an upset and win their qualifying group.

On September 4th, as each team in Group D played their seventh qualifying games for next year's European Championship (of a total 10), Poland

In 2014, the German national football team became only the third national football team in history to win four World Cups. Starting next fall, they will begin their campaign to tie the record for five titles-a feat that only Brazil have accomplished in the past. The journey will begin on September 4^th, when Germany play Norway on the first match day for the UEFA's qualifying rounds for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The Germans are playing in World Cup 2018 UEFA Qualifying Group C, which also includes the Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Azerbaijan, San Marino, and the aforementioned Norway.

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Germany's Chances at Outright Qualification: Guaranteed?

Based on Germany's status as reigning World Cup champions-not to mention

With the mid-June qualifying games now on the books, we are officially more than halfway through the Euro 2016 qualifying competition. Standings in each qualifying group are now starting to solidify themselves, and we are getting a better sense of which soccer teams are in good qualifying position and which ones are going to have to turn on the heat between now and October. In this blog post we take a look at the teams in Euro 2016 qualifying group D.

Of all the groups in this year's qualifying competition, Group D is undoubtedly among one of the most interesting. After winning last year's World Cup in glorious fashion, the German national football team really should have been able to steamroll Group D. After all, there are no other real heavyweight soccer teams in the group. Poland, Scotland, Ireland, Georgia, and Gibraltar are the other five contending countries, and none of them even participated in the 2014 World Cup-let alone reached the top of the podium.

It may not garner the attention or press coverage of the regular European Championship, the World Cup, or even the Copa America, but the 2015 UEFA European Under 21 Championship does provide some interesting insight on the up-and-coming talent of European football. Therefore, if you want to get a glimpse at the soccer stars of tomorrow ahead of everyone else, you might want to tune into Saturday's under-21 Euro semifinal matches. Here's what to expect.

Semifinal Match 1: Portugal vs. Germany

The first semifinal match on Saturday will be played between the winners of Group B (Portugal) and the runners-up from Group A (Germany). The Portuguese side will be playing in the "home team" position, while the Germans will be donning their away kits.

This match should be an exciting one to watch, since Portugal and Germany performed similarly during the group stage. The German side, though widely predicted to win

The national women's football teams from Japan and Brazil won three games apiece in the Women's World Cup 2015 group stage, establishing themselves as early tournament frontrunners. The FIFA tournament will now move into the knockout stage, with the round of 16 set to begin tomorrow (20^th June 2015). Other knockout stage qualifiers include England, the United States, France, Germany, and the Canadian host team.

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Groups A, B, and C

The group stage for the 2015 Women's World Cup was split into six groups of four. The top two teams from each qualified to advance to the round of 16, as did the four highest ranked third-place teams.

Of all the groups in the tournament, Group A likely proved to be the weakest. Despite having the home field advantage,