Today, the draw for the 2017 European U17 Team Championships (EU17TC17) was conducted and the final preparations for the biggest European U17 event can begin.
Badminton Europe (BEC) conducted the draw for the 2017 European U17 Team Championships live via Facebook at 1 PM (local time) from the office in Brøndby, Denmark.
A record high number of teams have entered the team event, and the draw decided in which of the 8 groups the 37 European nations were to be placed.
Six of the groups consists of 4 teams, while Group 7 will have five teams. Group 8 is divided into two subgroups; A & B, which consists of four teams each.
Germany put to the test in Group 5
Group 5 looks to be a tough group, where big nations such as Italy, Belgium and Norway take on the seeded nation of Germany.
The top seeded teams of Denmark and England are still favourites of Group 1 and 2. The only group with no seeded entry is subgroup 8b, with Switzerland, Sweden, Finland and Spain.
Here, the winners of 8b will face winners of 8a to decide who proceeds as the winner of Group 8.
Final draw on 23 November
The draw for the final stage of the team tournament will be made on Wednesday 23 November 2017, at the team managers’ meeting held immediately after the conclusion of the group stage.
The 2017 European U17 Championships will take place in Prague (Czech Republic) from 21-29 November.
Group 1: Denmark [1], Hungary, Lithuania, Estonia
Group 2: England [2], Portugal, Moldova, Israel
Group 3: France [3-4], Slovenia, Ukraine, Ireland
Group 4: Turkey [3-4], Latvia, Poland, Belarus
Group 5: Germany [5-8], Italy, Belgium, Norway
Group 6: Scotland [5-8], Slovakia, Austria, Croatia
Group 7: Czech Republic [5-8], Bulgaria, Netherlands, Cyprus
Group 8A: Russia [5-8], Faroe Islands, Romania, Greece
Group 8B: Switzerland, Sweden, Finland, Spain