UEFA Futsal EURO 2026 Matchday 2 Sunday preview: Croatia vs Georgia, France vs Latvia, Armenia vs Czechia, Ukraine vs Lithuania

Matchday 2 of UEFA Futsal EURO 2026 begins on Sunday as Group A continues at Arena Riga and Group B resumes at Žalgirio Arena, Kaunas.

In Riga, surprise Group A leaders Latvia face France, who last time out were held by a Croatia side now taking on a Georgia team looking to recover from defeat by the co-hosts. Armenia are on top in Group B and meet Czechia, who equalised late on Thursday to earn a draw against co-hosts Lithuania, who meet a Ukraine team without a point.

Group A: Croatia vs Georgia (13:00 CET, Riga)

Croatia opened with a 2-2 draw against France, Duje Kustura getting both the first goal of the finals and an equaliser with just over six minutes left. Having not got past the Futsal EURO group stage since 2014, Croatia were more than a match for 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup semi-finalists France.

On the other hand, Georgia fell 4-0 to co-hosts Latvia, meaning a second defeat will end their hopes of matching their debut run to the quarter-finals from four years ago. Georgia led Latvia 47-20 in attempts and 12-3 in corners but were left regretting their missed chances.

Marinko Mavrović, Croatia coach: "It's great we started the tournament with a good result against very strong opponents. We made individual mistakes, but this is a great point for us ahead of the next two matches. But it will only be a good point if we get results against Georgia and Latvia."

Avtandil Asatiani, Georgia coach: "We should not be complacent and continue working. We have very difficult games ahead of us and we should not repeat such mistakes."

Group A: France vs Latvia (16:00 CET, Riga)

Co-hosts Latvia secured their nation's first win in any UEFA final tournament with Wednesday's defeat of Georgia, two-goal Edgars Tarakanovs and keeper (and winger) Rainers Mūrnieks especially outstanding. A second victory would seal progress (and first place should Croatia not win) with an even bigger crowd expected at Arena Riga after their opening heroics, which equalled the tournament record Matchday 1 win for a host.

Three more points for Latvia will be far from straightforward against France, who – in only their second Futsal EURO – are among the favourites following that 2024 World Cup last-four run. After coming back from behind to lead Croatia, Les Bleus let their advantage slip, but there was much in their controlled attacking play to suggest expectations of a long run are justified.

Raphaël Reynaud, France coach: "It's going to be a very tough game because Latvia are a team that have progressed, and obviously they'll be playing at home. We'll need to take them very seriously at home."

Edgars Tarakanovs, Latvia player: "I hope against France we have even more supporters. But the whole team is happy as we had so many supporters [against Georgia] and that made it easier to play."

Group B: Armenia vs Czechia (13:00 CET, Kaunas)

Armenia, like Latvia, had a fantastic result on debut, coming from behind to beat Ukraine 2-1 thanks to a pair of Mihran Dermenjyan goals. Another victory would send them into the quarter-finals with a game to spare, and in first place if not coupled with a Lithuania win. Indeed, their performance against a nation that reached the semi-finals of both EURO 2022 and the 2024 World Cup confirmed their form from qualifying, when they finished above Kazakhstan.

Czechia needed a Francisco Mikuš leveller with 35 seconds to go to hold Lithuania 3-3 on Thursday, captain Michal Seidler having twice given his team the lead with his first career Futsal EURO finals goals in his fourth tournament. However, they remain without a EURO finals win since 2010 and face a nation who beat them twice in 2024 World Cup qualifying, albeit with several key players now changed.

Ruben Nazaretyan, Armenia coach: "I'm very happy we won against such strong opponents in our first match. It's great to start the tournament like this. I hope we continue. Our target is to also win the next two games."

Marek Kopecký, Czechia coach: "It turned out that it's different to play such a big match at the EURO compared to preparation. It took a toll on the boys ... We have to avoid individual mistakes in the match with Armenia."

Group B: Ukraine vs Lithuania (16:00 CET, Kaunas)

Ukraine seemed destined to justify their position among the pre-tournament favourites when Vladyslav Pervieiev gave them a 26th-minute lead against Armenia in a game they were controlling. But although they went on to lose, despite leading the goal attempts count 53-30, an opening group defeat is no barrier to progress – as they showed in both their EURO 2022 and the 2024 World Cup semi-final runs.

Lithuania may have missed out on matching Armenia and fellow co-hosts Latvia with victory on their finals debut, but the Kaunas crowd of more than 5,000 was thrilled by their performance. Indeed, it was Lithuania's first-ever point in any UEFA final tournament – football or futsal – but it gets no easier as they now face Ukraine, who beat them 7-0 and 5-3 in friendlies last September and 5-2 in April 2024.

Oleksandr Kosenko, Ukraine coach: "It was a really tough [opening] match for us. We need to prepare for [Lithuania]. Not a lot has changed. We hope that in the next match we will be able to play better, as in previous tournaments."

Dentinho, Lithuania coach: "Ukraine are one of the favourites to win the European Championship. It was a big surprise when they lost. We played against Ukraine twice last year and we know how they want to play. We feel better prepared after those experiences."