England Euro 2012 squad to be announced on May 16th

It’s going to be a big week for English international football, as the England Euro 2012 squad is due to be unveiled officially on Wednesday, May 16th.

The Football Association website will publish the squad selection list at 1pm ahead of a press conference due to take place that afternoon at Wembley Stadium.

 New manager Roy Hodgson will appear before members of the press to talk them through his choices and his plans for the summer’s tournament.

Less than a week later, on Monday, May 21st, the squad will assemble and journey to the continent to a Spanish training camp.
Friday, May 25th will see the squad relocate to Oslo for the Saturday match against Norway – the first friendly fixture for Hodgson’s England team.

As we reported recently, Hodgson’s first home match at Wembley is on Saturday, June 2nd, against Belgium.

Hodgson’s true test gets underway on June 11th in Donetsk, Ukraine, with the first Euro 2012 match against France – not an easy opener, by any means.

Further games against Sweden and tournament co-hosts Ukraine complete the group stage, and should put to bed any remaining arguments over Hodgson’s suitability for the managerial role.

One perennially popular topic for discussion – aside from whether the manager is any good – is England’s choice of anthem for the tournament.

Few have come close to the success of Baddiel, Skinner and the Lightning Seeds’ Three Lions, released in 1996.

The song was rewritten for the World Cup campaign in 1998, while 1990′s World in Motion by New Order ranks among the favourite-ever World Cup anthems for many England fans.

So it could come as a surprise to hear that the FA have not commissioned a track for 2012, but have instead offered their support to a charity song entitled Sing 4 England, and recorded by none other than broadcasting legend Chris Kamara.

Kamara’s single is raising funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care, who looked after his mother during the terminal stages of her illness, but Kamara adds that he hopes it could spur the players on.

He tells the FA website: “If the fans get behind the cause, we could inspire England to win their first major trophy since 1966, and that’d be unbelievable!”