Next summer promises to be a blockbuster one when it comes to international tournaments. Both UEFA Euro 2024 and the Copa America will be taking place and fans are already salivating at the prospect of the world's best battling it out.
It seems like two minutes since Lionel Messi was climbing his final peak and leading Argentina to victory at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, but a year on and attention has already turned to what's next for the best teams on the planet.
While the Albiceleste will be favourites for glory once more in South America, we are focusing on Europe. Italy are the reigning European champions after stunning England at Wembley to win the rescheduled Euro 2020 tournament in the summer of 2021.
However, the Azzurri aren't yet even assured of a place at next summer's showpiece, and they still must outlast Ukraine in qualifying should they wish to appear at the finals.
With, who are the continent's leading lights at present and are being considered as a frontrunner for the famous trophy next summer? Let's take a look.
England
Surely next summer is England's time, isn't it? It feels like all the Three Lions have ever known since their triumph on home turf at the 1966 FIFA World Cup is pain.
In recent years, Gareth Southgate has transformed a team that perennially faltered at major tournaments into a team that has become a major player on both the continental and global stage. But of course, the deeper a team goes into a major tournament, the more it hurts when they ultimately come up short.
That was the case in both 2018 and 2021. In the former of those, the English unexpectedly made it all the way to the World Cup semifinals only to be stunned by Croatia courtesy of Mario Mandžukić's 116th-minute winner.
Three years later England would go one better. But once more, only heartache was to be found in the form of the giant Gianluigi Donnarumma and his penalty-saving ways.
At the recent World Cup in Qatar, the Three Lions took a step backwards as they were eliminated at the quarter-final stage by France, despite being the dominant side for long periods.
Captain Harry Kane had the chance to level things up at two apiece however, he blazed his penalty over the bar and Les Bleus were left to celebrate yet another semi-final berth. But Southgate's men have bounced back in style in Euro 2024 qualifying.
They have defeated Italy home and away to secure safe passage through to next summer's tournament, and the bookies fancy their chances.
The best soccer betting odds providers currently make England the +450 second favourites to secure their first piece of silverware in almost 60 years. Surely Gareth Southgate will get the trophy he deserves and bow out on top, won't he?
France
It seems like the French consistently have a conveyor belt stacked with talent. Just when you think they are on the brink, they come roaring back.
At the last European Championships, they were eliminated by Switzerland on penalties, with Yann Sommer stopping the decisive spot kick from Kylian Mbappe to send Les Bleus packing at the last 16 stage.
But they proved their worth at the recent 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by defeating Poland, England, and Morocco en route to a second consecutive World Cup final.
In the Mbappe, they boast perhaps the planet's finest player in their ranks. He will be 25 years of age by the time Euro 2024 rolls around and he has been made captain of Les Bleus by manager Didier Deschamps.
He has been one of the stars of the show in qualifying netting six times and leading the French through a potentially difficult group featuring the Netherlands, 2004 champions Greece, and the Republic of Ireland. They are considered the favourites by the bookies and with their Paris Saint-Germain superstar spearheading their challenge, it's clear to see why.
Germany
German football is during a crisis. Treble-winning Bayern Munich manager Hansi Flick was recently relieved of his duties in charge of Die Mannschaft after a dismal run that saw them dumped out of the World Cup at the group stage for the second consecutive tournament.
To put that into perspective, 2018 was the first time in the then 110-year history of German football that they had been eliminated so early, and four years on, they didn't have the champions curse to use as an excuse.
Unfortunately for the Germans, things haven't really gotten any better since the showdown in Qatar. As they are hosting the showpiece event next summer, they haven't had to play any qualifying matches and have automatically qualified as hosts. But their performances in friendly matches have still left plenty to be desired.
The Germans have lost to the likes of Poland, Colombia, and Japan in recent months. they have also stumbled to draws against Ukraine and Mexico. But with home support on their side, they are still considered the third favourites. Whether they live up to that tag remains to be seen.
