The UEFA European Championship kicked off 10 days ago and all 24 participating teams have now played.

There have been a few upsets though favorites like Germany, France and current champions Spain are playing confidently. On Saturday night star Christiano Ronaldo shocked fans by missing a penalty which meant his team, Portugal, managed only a draw with Austria.

Bars and clubs throughout Shanghai have been packed with fans and expats enjoying the football fest. The Global Times talked to some of the fans about how they were finding the contest and their personal preferences.

Richard de Romijn, the Netherlands

I am kind of a fan of football, but this year unfortunately, my country, Holland is not participating, which kind of hits my enthusiasm for watching the matches. Of the remaining teams, I am optimistic for the Belgium national team, since they have many "stars" like Eden Hazard.

I personally am a fan of Hazard, who plays as a midfielder in Euro 2016. He is famous for his speed and possession skills and I think he will perform even more impressively in this year's Euro Cup.

 

Kay Grieser, Germany

Of course I am supporting my own national team, Germany, and my favorite player is Thomas Müller. He's been the best and craziest player I have never seen. He plays as a forward in Euro 2016.

I watched the first match with my friends, and that was really wonderful. Our team beat the Ukraine 2-0, which is a good start. I think they are on the right track and they will have very impressive performance this year. 

Cao He, a sports data provider employee, China

I am supporting the Spanish team and my favorite player is Cesc Fabregas who is a midfielder.

From the first match, we saw that the old problem of the Spanish team still has to be fixed. The absence of veterans like Villa and Torres made it difficult to win. Though they finally beat Czech 1-0 through a goal by Pique, that was just a flash and he cannot be used as a regular weapon for the team. 

In my view, Morata and Nolito, the two players that lack national team experience, should not be included in the starting lineup at the same time. And the time given to Pedro was so limited that he couldn't make use of his running skills to pull away from opponents.

From the first game, I would say that Spain has little chance of winning this year. Hopefully they can make the use of the rest of the games to train their new player to complete the succession of new to old.

I believe those young players like David de Gea and Bartra will perform better in Russia 2018.

Ben Terry, the US

I like Schweinsteiger from Germany and I also watched the World Cup. It has been fun to see a lot of the same faces that you see in the World Cup and see them again in the Euro.

As the owner of a bar, I usually watch the game with my customers in the bar, where there is a big screen in the center. I am from the US, so I don't have a specific team that I root for - I just like to watch good play. But it's nice to host people from different countries and group them together for their teams, and celebrate with them. After seeing the first round, even though it was a close game, the score didn't look too far away. I thought the French team was playing well. But it really will depend on what team gets to play the fastest.

The Euro Cup is an exciting time for football fans all over the world. I think it's fun to see people playing football at a high level and representing their countries.

For me, my own country and also China, we may not have a team that's in it, but we can appreciate how much people care about their teams and how much sport is a representation of their countries.

Allan, the Philippines

I like Spain and I like all the players in the Spanish national team, including the new players. A lot faces are new in this year's Euro Cup. I work in a bar and I really like to watch the games with Spanish people. They are always excited and raise the tension in the bar.

I think their performance in the first round of Euro 2016 will be a little stronger than last time because they look more aggressive.

I also like Ireland. Some of my friends are Irish and they come here to watch the game together. Though my own country is not participating, it is fun to watch the games with people that support their own teams.

Steve, Canada

I can't believe that Euro 2016 is already here. Many phenomenal teams are competing and of all of them my favorite team has to be Portugal. I believe they have a great chance of winning the cup this year due to their outstanding players and teamwork. Even though they tied with Iceland in the first game, I think they still have lots of room for improvement and this was just unlucky.

What I like best about the team is its playing style, which is focused more toward defense and not much attack. With Patricio in goal and Pepe leading the defense, the opposing team's chances of scoring are minimum. Also Nani and Ronaldo can strike to make great goals. I will be cheering them on at home and I really hope that they will do well. 

Sanne Norstrom, Sweden

I am not a big fan of football games, but I know what is going on. I am from Sweden, so, of course, I am supporting my country's team. I am not sure how the actual team is organized this year, but we have one big star, Zlatan Ibrahimovic. I think everybody is hoping for him.

I will watch the game with my friends in a bar or restaurant, because the atmosphere there will be more exciting and it is fun to watch football games with other people that support the same team. 

This article was written by Sun Jingyan