Some have billed it as a Cristiano Ronaldo vs Antoine Griezmann showdown while others have even put Lionel Messi's nae somewhere in between.
But European Championship finals do not always follow the script - as the Portugal players involved in their shock defeat by Greece in 2004 can testify. Twelve years on and it is the Portuguese cast in the role of unfashionable underdogs and their opponents France who must withstand the pressure and capitalise on home advantage.
Portugal coach Fernando Santos freely concedes his side are the tournament's "ugly duckling", but he promised during the group stage that they would reach the final - and so it has proved.
France, however, have been far more ruthless, with 13 of those efforts finding the net. One more would see them equal the record for the most goals at a single European Championship (set by the French in 1984).
Crucial to their success has been the clinical form of Antoine Griezmann, now heavily odds-on to win the Golden Boot after taking his tournament tally to six with two goals against Germany. The 25-year-old - whose maternal grandfather was Portuguese - is already among esteemed company at the tournament.
Griezmann's exploits are all the more remarkable given he was dropped from the starting XI following France's opening game.
That is just one of several difficult decisions made by coach Didier Deschamps which have paid handsome dividends - whether they are changes in formation, personnel or even the non-selection of Karim Benzema before the tournament.
Deschamps has said that France reaching the final of their home Euro 2016 is helping to bring back a feelgood factor in the country, where 130 people were killed in November in attacks across Paris.
The whole world will be watching with bated breath awaiting the crowning of new European champions.
