There is much more than just pride and prestige at stake at the 2011 European Championship in Lit-huania as two automatic bids to the 2012 London Olympics are up for grabs as well as another chance for four more teams.

The best of basketball in Europe face off starting today in four first-round cities throughout the basketball-mad nation with the 2011 champions to be crowned on September 18 at the brand new Zalgiris Arena in Kaunas.

The two finalists will both book their tickets for London next summer – and join already-qualified hosts Great Britain, surprise African champions Tunisia and reigning world champions United States.

The four next-best finishers – from bronze medallists to the sixth-placed team – will then play at the 12-team pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament, which will provide three other teams for the 12-team Olympic field.

EuroBasket 2011 is widely considered one of the most open in ages with many teams having title chances. But the main focus for all the teams is the quarter-finals, which mean the teams’ Olympic dreams are still alive.

Reigning champions Spain are considered the overwhelming favourites for Lithuania 2011 as they bring back all the top players who finished a disappointing fifth place at the 2010 World Championship in Turkey after losing to Serbia in the quarter-finals.

Hosts Lithuania are another top contender thanks to the home court advantage and a strong roster of motivated players looking to bring the championship back home for the first time since 2003.

Among the other teams with title aspirations are Turkey and Serbia.

Included in the circle of dark horses are France, who have plenty of NBA talent but have only won a bronze medal in 2005 since 1959.

The 2011 edition is the biggest championship ever with 24 teams – up from 16 teams in the last nine tournaments dating back to 1993.

That also means that the teams will have to play five games within six days in the first round of action.