0 in football and some other sports, the first part of a cup competition when teams are divided into groups and the teams in each group play against each other. The winner or winners of each group then move onto the next part of the competition: --
The top two teams from each of the four groups in the group stage competed in the knockout stage.
In 2009, the championship had been played with a knock out group stage followed by a final.
In 2010, they finished 5th and were again eliminated in group stage.
See the detailed group stage page for tiebreakers if two or more teams are equal on points.
They did so by placing second in their group during the group stage of the qualification round.
The 16 top ranked teams spread across the biggest domestic leagues qualified directly for the tournament group stage.
The group stage also follows a round-robin tournament format.
The top two teams qualify for the group stage, which join the eight teams in the group stage.
