UK and Ireland announced as HOSTS for Euro 2028 by UEFA, with the event set to be worth £2.6BN to the economy – while Italy and Turkey are confirmed to host Euro 2032
- The UK and Ireland have been announced as hosts for Euro 2028 by UEFA
- 10 stadiums across the five nations involved in the bid will be used for matches
- Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast ‘It’s All Kicking Off!’
The UK and Ireland have been confirmed by UEFA as the hosts for Euro 2028.
Mail Sport reported last week how they were set to win the hosting rights after rivals Turkey decided to pull out of the bidding process to focus on Euro 2032 in a joint bid with Italy – which they were subsequently awarded.
And a formal decision for the event was taken on Tuesday in Nyon, Switzerland, after the five-nation bid made a presentation to UEFA’s executive committee.
The UK and Ireland focused on a Euro 2028 bid, with UEFA’s approval, when they ended a plan to be Europe’s preferred candidate for the 2030 World Cup.
FIFA subsequently named Morocco, Spain and Portugal as joint hosts for the showpiece event in seven years time, while the opening three matches of the tournament will take place in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to mark 100 years since the inaugural World Cup.
UEFA have confirmed the UK and Ireland will be hosts for the 2028 European Championships
A decision was made after the UK and Ireland bid team presented their case to UEFA officials
Gareth Bale, an ambassador for the UK and Ireland bid, was in Nyon for the announcement
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin also revealed that Turkey and Italy will host Euro 2032
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It is not yet known if all five countries involved in the bid – England, Scotland, Wales, Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland – will play in the tournament.
The Independent previously reported that it is ‘unlikely’ UEFA will award five automatic places to those countries for the 24-team tournament.
However, according to the Telegraph, England will go through the qualification process as the FA are keen to keep the team competitive in the run-up to the finals – which will be worth £2.6bn to the economy.
The UK and Ireland revealed the details behind their bid back in April, including the ten stadiums that will host games.
Two stadiums proposed have not yet been built – Everton’s Bramley-Moore Dock and Casement Park in Belfast.
Work on Everton’s new stadium has already begun, while Irish FA chief executive Patrick Nelson insisted that construction of the new Casement Park will go ahead once the bid is successful.
Casement Park, a Gaelic games venue in Belfast, was selected even though it has not been used since 2013 and work has yet to start on transforming it into a new 34,500-capacity stadium.
As well as Everton’s future home, other English stadiums including Man City’s Etihad Stadium, Newcastle’s St James’ Park, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Villa Park and Wembley Stadium.
The other grounds picked are Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, Glasgow’s Hampden Park and Dublin’s Aviva Stadium.
Manchester United’s Old Trafford stadium was the most notable venue to miss the cut, with Liverpool’s home Anfield and the London Stadium – West Ham’s home which also staged the London 2012 Olympics – also not part of the UK and Ireland’s submission.
United said they ‘mutually agreed to withdraw from the shortlist’ because they could not provide ‘the necessary certainty around the availability of Old Trafford due to potential redevelopment of the stadium’, while Anfield was never in the running because its pitch size does not meet UEFA requirements.
A number of games were played in England for the staging of the delayed Euro 2020 championship – which took place in the summer of 2021.
Wembley hosted the final which saw England reach their first men’s final since the 1966 World Cup.
However, Italy prevailed on the day as they beat Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions after a penalty shootout.
The British and Irish bid was backed by prime minister Rishi Sunak, Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar, Scotland’s first minister Humza Yousaf and Wales’ first minister Mark Drakeford.
They said earlier this year in a statement: ‘It will be the biggest sporting event our islands have ever jointly staged – a passionate and unforgettable celebration, with long-term benefits for our cities and communities as well as all European football.’
Map showing the ten stadiums that have been selected as part of the UK and Ireland’s bid
Everton’s future home at Bramley-Moore Dock made the UK and Ireland’s bid, with Liverpool’s Anfield stadium not in the running because its pitch size does not meet UEFA requirements
Work on Casement Park in Belfast will go ahead after the UK and Ireland were announced as hosts
The bid submission predicts that the 2028 tournament will generate ‘cumulative socio-economic benefits of up to £2.6billion for our nations’. Sustainability is placed as a top priority, with a promise that 80 per cent of ticket holders will be able to travel to matches by public transport.
Euro 2024 is being hosted alone by Germany, who beat Turkey in a vote back in September 2018.
Turkey pulled out of the process for Euro 2028 as they focused on their bid to host the following European Championships in 2032 – in a joint unopposed bid with Italy.
They will be delighted their bid got them over the line, as their failure to win the rights for Euro 2024 meant they had unsuccessfully bid to host every Euros since 2008.
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