England vs Croatia – Euro 2020: Team news, kick-off time, TV channel, live stream, venue, odds

England will finally get their Euro 2020 campaign underway on Sunday, as they take on World Cup rivals Croatia in their opening fixture. 

It was Croatia who infamously came from behind to break the hearts of Gareth Southgate‘s England in the semi-final of the 2018 World Cup, though they went on to lose to France in the final. 

England now have their opportunity to revenge, as they look to get off to a positive start following two successive wins in as many pre-tournament warm-up games. 

Coming into the tournament among the favourites, England could potentially play all-but one match at their home venue Wembley, which will host the final on July 11.  

But with just two days remaining until the tournament gets underway – and England’s opening match just around the corner, Southgate still has a number of selection headaches to overcome. 

With England’s first match quickly approaching, Sportsmail takes you through the all-important information.   

England come up against World Cup rivals Croatia, who beat them in the 2018 semi-final

England and Croatia are joined by both Scotland and the Czech Republic in Group D

England and Croatia are joined by both Scotland and the Czech Republic in Group D

When is England vs Croatia? 

England’s opening match of the European Championships against Croatia will be played on Sunday, June 13. 

The match will start at 2pm BST and will be held at Wembley Stadium, which will be at 25 per cent capacity.

Elsewhere, Group D rivals Scotland and Czech Republic will then play their opening fixture the following day on Monday, June 14 with kick-off at 2pm in Glasgow.   

How to watch England in action

England vs Croatia will be broadcast for free on BBC One, with coverage starting at 1pm. 

UK viewers will also be able to stream the match online for free via the BBC iPlayer.

Sportsmail will also be running a live blog, so you can keep up-to-date with us.

England’s group stage fixtures

  • June 13: England vs Croatia, 2pm at Wembley
  • June 18: England vs Scotland, 8pm at Wembley
  • June 22: Czech Republic vs England, 8pm at Wembley

Team news

Harry Maguire was the one absentee during England's open training session on Wednesday

Harry Maguire was the one absentee during England’s open training session on Wednesday

As stated, Southgate has a number of crucial decisions to make, with those from Chelsea and Manchester City – who arrived late after competing in the Champions League final – now available.

Indeed, none of Mason Mount, Reece James, Ben Chilwell, Phil Foden, Kyle Walker, Raheem Sterling or John Stones were involved in either warm-up game – but they won’t be short of match practice.

However, Southgate’s selection is further complicated by the prevalent injuries, with Harry Maguire almost certainly out, having been the only absentee from Wednesday’s training session. 

Meanwhile, Jordan Henderson featured against Romania, but just how fit he is is yet to be seen.

There was also a blow for Southgate with an injury to Trent Alexander-Arnold against Romania, with Brighton centre-back Ben White called up in his place, having made his debut against Austria.

England squad

Harry Kane will captain England at a second major tournament, after the World Cup in 2018

Harry Kane will captain England at a second major tournament, after the World Cup in 2018

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Manchester United), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton).

Defenders: Ben White (Brighton), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Reece James (Chelsea), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid), Kyle Walker (Manchester City).

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds), Declan Rice (West Ham).

Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Raheem Sterling (Man City).

Croatia squad

Veteran Luka Modric, 35, will likely play at the heart of midfielder once more for Croatia

Veteran Luka Modric, 35, will likely play at the heart of midfielder once more for Croatia

Goalkeepers: Dominik Livakovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Lovre Kalinic (Hajduk Split), Simon Sluga (Luton Town).

Defenders: Sime Vrsaljko (Atletico Madrid), Domagoj Vida (Besiktas), Josip Juranovic (Legia Warsaw), Dejan Lovren (Zenit St Petersburg), Duje Caleta-Car (Olympique Marseille), Borna Barisic (Rangers), Mile Skoric (Osijek), Josko Gvardiol (Dinamo Zagreb), Domagoj Bradaric (Lille).

Midfielders: Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Marcelo Brozovic (Inter Milan), Milan Badelj (Genoa), Mateo Kovacic (Chelsea), Nikola Vlasic (CSKA Moscow), Mario Pasalic (Atalanta), Luka Ivanusec (Dinamo Zagreb).

Forwards: Bruno Petkovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivan Perisic (Inter Milan), Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim), Josip Brekalo (Vfl Wolfsburg), Ante Rebic (AC Milan), Mislav Orsic (Dinamo Zagreb), Ante Budimir (Osasuna) (Writing by Zoran Milosavljevic; Editing by Ken Ferris and Christian Radnedge).  

England vs Croatia: The odds

With England coming among favourites to win the European Championships, and particularly as they are playing at home, it comes as no surprise that they are expected to beat Croatia on Sunday. 

The Three Lions are favoured at 4/6 to prevail, while Austria are the underdogs at 9/2. Meanwhile, a draw is at 13/5.  

*Odds as per Betfair and correct at the time of publication.