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The England national team will embark on their Euro 2028 adventure at the Manchester City’s stadium, on the condition that they achieve the expected entry for a championship hosted across most of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

City’s stadium has not welcomed an Three Lions fixture since May 2016, when Turkey were overcome 2-1 in a warm-up game, but is highly likely to welcome the Three Lions for their inaugural game on a Saturday in June 2028.

The English side are planned to play their concluding group fixtures at Wembley Stadium, but, in the event of winning their group, their last-16 tie would be held at the Newcastle stadium. Securing the runner-up spot would mean commencing the knockouts at Everton’s ground.

Championship Opening and Protest

The championship was unveiled at an event in Piccadilly Circus on the previous evening. High-ranking officials from Uefa and the host FAs were confronted as they arrived the location by about 50 pro-Palestine demonstrators, who demanded Israel’s national side to be kicked out from the sport because of the Gaza crisis.

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

Championship Schedule

The first match of the tournament will be held at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital, on Friday 9 June, a game that will involve the Dragons if they make it.

Wembley will host the two semi-final matches and the championship match, which will be played on July 9, 2028 with a kick-off time at 5pm.

It is anticipated that an earlier start, which will also be adopted for European club finals from the following campaign, will attract families and help connect with a broader range of viewers.

Qualifying Teams

The Ireland are scheduled to play their first game at the Dublin Arena and Scotland would follow suit at Hampden Park.

The national sides of all four hosts will take part in the qualifying tournament; two reserved places will be reserved for any that miss out on the finals through the qualification path.

Stadiums and Playoffs

The Birmingham venue and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium round out the nine tournament locations. All will hold at least one elimination game, with the last eight held at each country’s national stadium.

The draw for the qualifiers will be conducted in the Northern Irish capital, which was removed as a venue city last year when it emerged the proposed venue could not be upgraded in time, on a date in late 2026.

Tournament Vision

“This will be a competition for the followers and a festival of everything we love about the football – its passion and ability to unite individuals.”

Over 3 million passes, a record for a men’s European Championship, are expected to be offered to supporters.