FOOTBALL fever is about to grip the nation as the 15th edition of the UEFA European Championships heads to France.

For the first time in it’s history, the Championships will be contested by 24 teams increased from the 16 team format that had been in place since 1996.

This change has meant that five teams have secured their first ever qualification to a UEFA European Championship final tournament - Albania, Iceland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia and of course, Wales.

France was chosen as the host nation on May 28, 2010 after a bidding process that beat Italy and Turkey for the right to host the 2016 finals. This is the third

time that France has held the tournament after the inaugral tournament in 1960 and the 1984 finals.

A total of 53 teams intially competed for 23 places in the final tournament to join France who had automatically qualified as hosts with the winning team earning the right to compete at the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup hosted by Russia.

Four newly constructed stadiums have been built specifically for the tournament

in Lille, Lyon, Nice and Bordeaux, with each stadia becoming the new home of the local football team. Many other stadia including grounds in Marseille,

Saint-Denis, Saint-Etienne, Lens and Toulouse have all been upgraded to fall in line with tournament regulations.

This year, the tournament has taken on an even greater significance with Wales qualifying for their fi rst major championships since 1958. The nations eyes were fixed on the final group draw in December 2015 when it was confirmed

that Wales will come face to face with the old enemy, England plus Russia and Slovakia who have also qualified for their first European tournament. Thousands of Welsh supporters entered the ballot for tickets to the group stages with priority being given to those supporters on the FAW loyalty scheme. A total of 52,160 tickets were applied for through Wales’ ticket portal for a total

of 17,000 tickets (the allocation was later increased to 21,177) spread across the three group games. Demand was always going to outstrip supply hence why the ballot system gave priority to those supporters who had accrued more loyalty

points.

The road to France was a relatively straight forward campaign for Wales who finished second in qualifying group B behind Belgium and a full four points clear of nearest rivals Bosnia and Herzegovina who inflicted Wales’ only defeat

of the campaign – a 2-0 loss away from home. Wales’ ‘coming of age’ moment came in June 2015 when a single goal from Gareth Bale helped them seal a memorable 1-0 victory over Belgium in front of a packed Cardiff City Stadium. This, coupled with a 0-0 draw with Belgium in Brussels helped Wales arrive on the international stage and made their rivals take note of their impressive displays.

Cardiff born Gareth Bale proved his worth during the qualifying stages as he finished as the groups joint top goal scorer with Bosnia’s Edin Dzeko

with seven goals. Bale has been in tremendous form for both club and country during this season finding the net over 20 times. However, despite what

has been written in the national media at times, Wales are simply not just a one-man team. The likes of Aaron Ramsey who himself found the net twice during the qualifying stages together with the defensive rocks of captain Ashley Williams and Chris Gunter have all played vital roles for their country.

Crystal Palace midfielder Joe Ledley has also been a lynchpin for Wales with over 60 appearances for his country.

When the tournament kicks off on June 10, the whole nation will be adorning the red of Wales ready to back the boys to European victory. We may be considered rank outsiders, but after Leicester City’s heroics in the Premier League this season, it’s safe to say – never underestimate an underdog!

See inside this week’s Observer for your free 8-page pull out guide to UEFA Euro 2016.