England to Begin the European Championship 2028 Campaign at City’s Home Ground
The English squad will initiate their 2028 European Championship adventure at the Etihad Stadium, provided that they attain the relatively straightforward entry for a tournament taking place in the majority of the UK and the Ireland.
City’s stadium has not hosted an England men’s game since eight years ago, when the visitors were overcome 2-1 in a warm-up game, but is almost certain to host the Three Lions for their opening fixture on Saturday 10 June 2028.
England are planned to play their final two group matches at Wembley, but, in the event of winning their group, their knockout stage opener would take place at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. Placing second would mean commencing the elimination stage at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Championship Kickoff and Rally
The championship was inaugurated at an event in central London on Wednesday night. Senior figures from Uefa and the host FAs were heckled as they entered the site by about 50 protesters, who called for Israel’s national side to be removed from international football because of the conflict in Gaza.
Placards were displayed with slogans stating “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while activists called out: “Kick Israel out.”
Tournament Schedule
The inaugural fixture of the European Championship will be held at the the national stadium of Wales in Cardiff, on a Friday in June 2028, a fixture that will include Wales if they qualify.
The national stadium will host the two semi-final matches and the title decider, which will be staged on a Sunday in July 2028 with a commencement at late afternoon.
It is anticipated that an earlier kick-off, which will also be implemented for UEFA Champions League finals from the upcoming season, will appeal to families and help reach a broader range of audiences.
Participating Countries
The Republic of Ireland are scheduled to play their initial fixture at the Dublin stadium and Scotland would follow suit at the national stadium of Scotland.
All four host countries’ teams will participate in the preliminary stage; two guaranteed slots will be set aside for any that miss out on the tournament through the standard process.
Stadiums and Knockout Stage
The Birmingham venue and Spurs’ ground round out the nine tournament locations. Every stadium will hold at least one playoff fixture, with the quarterfinal matches played at each country’s national stadium.
The draw for the qualifiers will be held in the Northern Irish capital, which was dropped as a host city last year when it was revealed Casement Park could not be upgraded in time, on a date in late 2026.
Tournament Vision
“This will be a championship for the followers and a showcase of everything we value about the football – its emotion and power to foster unity.”
Over 3 million passes, a all-time high for a Euro tournament, are expected to be made available to supporters.