The Latest: France vs. Romania to open Euro 2016
PARIS (AP) - The Latest from the draw for the European Championships next June:
___
18:45
The opening match of the European Championships next year will see host nation France play Romania.
They will meet June 10 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, on the northern outskirts of Paris.
Also drawn in their Group A is Albania.
World champion Germany has a tough foe in Poland in Group C.
___
18:40
Wales' first participation at the European Championships will see it play a familiar foe: England.
The two home nations have been drawn together in Group B.
They will play each other in Lens on June 16.
____
18:30
UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino has paid tribute to the victims of the Paris attacks in a short introductory speech, expressing the European governing body's solidarity "with all those affected by the attacks of November 13" and what he called the "deeply tragic" events.
The elephant not in the room is Michel Platini. The UEFA president is fighting a ban from football that kept him out of the draw ceremony.
But the crowd applauded when footage was shown of Platini scoring in the 1984 tournament that France won on home soil.
___
18:10
The draw ceremony for the European Championships has kicked off in Paris with a musical journey through the culture of the host nation France.
Cancan dancers got the show rolling. They made way for other dancers wearing the flags of the 24 teams.
The high-energy show contrasted with the heavy security outside the draw venue, reinforced in the wake of the Nov. 13 terror attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.
Famed DJ David Guetta, who wrote the official Euro 2016 song, has just announced to the VIP crowd that he will host a big free concert in Paris before the tournament starts June 10.