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England’s men’s team will commence their UEFA Euro 2028 adventure at the Etihad Stadium, assuming they secure the expected passage for a competition staged throughout most of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

Manchester City’s home ground has not hosted an Three Lions fixture since eight years ago, when the Turkish team were beaten 2-1 in a friendly, but is highly likely to stage the Three Lions for their first match on June 10, 2028.

The team are set to play their last two group stage games at Wembley, but, in the event of winning the preliminary round, their round of 16 match would take place at the Newcastle stadium. Placing second would mean starting the playoffs at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Competition Opening and Protest

The championship was unveiled at an gathering in central London on Wednesday evening. High-ranking officials from Uefa and the host football associations were barracked as they approached the venue by approximately 50 protesters, who called for Israel’s national side to be removed from global football because of the Gaza crisis.

Banners were displayed with messages reading “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while protesters chanted: “Kick Israel out.”

Championship Schedule

The inaugural fixture of Euro 2028 will be played at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital, on Friday 9 June, a match that will include Wales if they secure a place.

The national stadium will host both semi-finals and the title decider, which will be staged on Sunday 9 July with a kick-off time at 5pm.

It is anticipated that an afternoon start, which will also be used for European club finals from the upcoming season, will appeal to families and help engage a wider spectrum of fans.

Qualifying Teams

The Republic of Ireland are scheduled to play their initial fixture at the Aviva Stadium and the Tartan Army would play similarly at Glasgow’s Hampden Park.

All four host countries’ teams will enter the qualifying tournament; two reserved places will be set aside for any that fail to qualify for Euro 2028 through the standard process.

Venues and Playoffs

Villa Park and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium finalize the nine host stadiums. Each one will hold at least one elimination game, with the quarter-finals held at the national stadium of each host.

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

Leadership Comment

“This will be a championship for the followers and a celebration of everything we cherish about the football – its passion and capacity to bring people together.”

In excess of three million passes, a record for a Euro tournament, are projected to be made available to attendees.