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The England national team will initiate their 2028 European Championship journey at the Manchester City’s stadium, provided that they achieve the expected qualification for a competition taking place in most of the United Kingdom and the Ireland.

City’s stadium has not hosted an England men’s fixture since the spring of 2016, when the Turkish team were defeated 2-1 in a friendly, but is highly likely to stage the England side for their first match on a Saturday in June 2028.

The team are scheduled to play their final two group matches at the national stadium, but, should they win Group B, their knockout stage opener would occur at St James’ Park. Finishing second would mean starting the playoffs at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Competition Launch and Protest

The event was unveiled at an event in central London on Wednesday evening. Senior figures from European football’s governing body and the host FAs were confronted as they approached the venue by around fifty pro-Palestine demonstrators, who called for Israel to be expelled from international football because of the conflict in Gaza.

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

Championship Timeline

The first match of the European Championship will be played at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital, on June 9, 2028, a game that will involve the Welsh team if they make it.

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

It is hoped that an earlier kick-off, which will also be used for European club finals from the upcoming season, will appeal to family audiences and help engage a more diverse set of audiences.

Qualifying Teams

The Republic of Ireland are due to play their opening match at the Aviva Stadium and Scotland would play similarly at Hampden Park.

Each host nation’s squad will enter the preliminary stage; two automatic spots will be set aside for any that do not reach the tournament through the qualification path.

Venues and Playoffs

The Birmingham venue and Spurs’ ground round out the event’s nine venues. Each one will hold at least one knockout match, with the quarterfinal matches held at the national stadium of each host.

The qualification draw will be conducted in Belfast, which was excluded as a tournament location last year when it was revealed the Belfast stadium could not be redeveloped in time, on 6 December 2026.

Tournament Vision

“The event will be a tournament for the fans and a showcase of everything we love about the game – its emotion and power to unite individuals.”

More than three million admissions, a record for a Euro tournament, are anticipated to be made available to attendees.