The England men's football team is set to kick off its Euro 2028 challenge at the home of Manchester City, the Etihad Stadium, marking a significant return to the venue for the first time in over a decade.
Tournament Schedule and Key Venues
Assuming successful qualification, England will play their first group match on Saturday, 10 June 2028, at the Etihad. This will be the first England men's game held there since a 2-1 friendly victory over Turkey in May 2016. The team's subsequent two group fixtures are scheduled for Wembley Stadium in London.
The tournament's opening ceremony and first match will be held a day earlier, on Friday, 9 June 2028, at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. This match will feature Wales, provided they also qualify for the final tournament.
Knockout Stage and Host Nation Prospects
The path through the knockout stages is heavily influenced by England's group stage performance. Should England win Group B, their last-16 tie would be hosted at Newcastle's St James' Park. A second-place finish would see them begin the knockout phase at Everton's new Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Wembley Stadium is slated to host both semi-finals and the final on Sunday, 9 July 2028. In a move aimed at attracting family audiences, the final will have an earlier kick-off time of 5pm, a change also being adopted for Champions League finals from next season.
A Tournament Across Nations
Euro 2028 will be a joint effort hosted across the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. The other host nations have also been allocated their opening venues: the Republic of Ireland will start at the Dublin Arena, while Scotland will begin at Hampden Park.
All four host countries will enter the standard qualification process. However, two automatic qualification spots are being reserved for any of the host nations that fail to qualify through the conventional route.
The tournament will utilise ten stadia across the five host associations. The confirmed venues are:
- Wembley Stadium (London)
- Etihad Stadium (Manchester)
- Principality Stadium (Cardiff)
- Dublin Arena (Dublin)
- Hampden Park (Glasgow)
- Villa Park (Birmingham)
- Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (London)
- St James' Park (Newcastle)
- Hill Dickinson Stadium (Liverpool)
- Casement Park (Belfast)
Every stadium will host at least one knockout match, with each country's national stadium staging a quarter-final. The qualifying draw is scheduled for 6 December 2026, in Belfast.
Debbie Hewitt, the Football Association's chair and chair of the tournament's delivery company, stated: "It will be a tournament for the fans and a festival of everything we love about the game – its passion and ability to bring people together." A record-breaking three million tickets are expected to be available for the championship.
