🔗 Share this article

The England national team will embark on their UEFA Euro 2028 journey at the Etihad Stadium, provided that they attain the expected entry for a tournament hosted across most of the United Kingdom and the Ireland.

City’s stadium has not welcomed an English men’s game since eight years ago, when the Turkish team were defeated 2-1 in a exhibition match, but is expected to stage the England side for their first match on Saturday 10 June 2028.

The team are scheduled to play their last two group stage games at Wembley, but, should they win Group B, their last-16 tie would be held at the Newcastle stadium. Securing the runner-up spot would mean starting the knockouts at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Competition Kickoff and Protest

The event was launched at an event in central London on Wednesday night. Key representatives from European football’s governing body and the organizing bodies were barracked as they entered the location by approximately 50 protesters, who demanded the Israeli team to be expelled from international football because of the situation in Gaza.

Banners were raised with messages reading “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while demonstrators called out: “Kick Israel out.”

Tournament Schedule

The inaugural fixture of the European Championship will be staged at the the national stadium of Wales in the Welsh capital, on June 9, 2028, a match that will involve Wales if they make it.

Wembley Stadium will host both semi-finals and the final, which will be played on July 9, 2028 with a kick-off time at 5pm.

It is expected that an afternoon start, which will also be adopted for Champions League finals from next season, will appeal to family audiences and help reach a wider spectrum of viewers.

Participating Countries

The Republic of Ireland are due to play their opening match at the Aviva Stadium and the Scottish team would follow suit at Glasgow’s Hampden Park.

The national sides of all four hosts will enter the qualifying tournament; two automatic spots will be reserved for any that do not reach Euro 2028 through the qualification path.

Locations and Playoffs

Villa Park and The North London arena round out the nine host stadiums. Every stadium will hold at least one elimination game, with the quarter-finals held at every host’s main arena.

The qualification draw will be conducted in the Northern Irish capital, which was dropped as a host city last year when it was revealed the Belfast stadium could not be redeveloped in time, on a date in late 2026.

Leadership Comment

“It will be a championship for the supporters and a celebration of everything we love about the game – its emotion and ability to unite individuals.”

More than three million tickets, a record for a Euro tournament, are expected to be made available to supporters.