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The England national team will commence their Euro 2028 journey at the Manchester City’s stadium, assuming they secure the anticipated qualification for a competition staged throughout most of the United Kingdom and the Ireland.

City’s stadium has not hosted an English men’s game since eight years ago, when the Turkish team were defeated 2-1 in a warm-up game, but is expected to host the national team for their opening fixture on June 10, 2028.

England are set to play their last two group stage games at Wembley, but, should they win the preliminary round, their last-16 tie would be held at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. Placing second would mean commencing the elimination stage at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Competition Kickoff and Protest

The event was inaugurated at an gathering in central London on Wednesday evening. Senior figures from Uefa and the host football associations were heckled as they approached the location by approximately 50 pro-Palestine demonstrators, who called for the Israeli team to be kicked out from the sport because of the situation in Gaza.

Banners were displayed with slogans saying “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while activists shouted: “Kick Israel out.”

Event Fixture List

The inaugural fixture of the European Championship will be played at the Cardiff’s stadium in the Welsh capital, on a Friday in June 2028, a match that will include the Welsh team if they make it.

The national stadium will host both semi-finals and the final, which will be held on July 9, 2028 with a start time at 5pm.

It is expected that an earlier start, which will also be implemented for European club finals from the upcoming season, will cater to households and help engage a more diverse set of audiences.

Qualifying Teams

The Republic of Ireland are scheduled to play their opening match at the Dublin Arena and the Scottish team would play similarly at Hampden Park.

All four host countries’ teams will participate in the preliminary stage; two reserved places will be reserved for any that miss out on Euro 2028 through that route.

Stadiums and Elimination Phase

The Birmingham venue and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium complete the event’s nine venues. Every stadium will hold at least one knockout match, with the last eight staged at the national stadium of each host.

The qualification draw will be held in Belfast, which was dropped as a host city last year when it was revealed the Belfast stadium could not be renovated in time, on December 6, 2026.

Tournament Vision

“It will be a competition for the followers and a festival of everything we love about the football – its fervor and power to foster unity.”

More than three million passes, a record for a UEFA European Championship, are expected to be made available to fans.