Euro 2028: Hosts have to prove themselves in the qualification!

Euro 2028: Hosts have to prove themselves in the qualification!

Bilbao, Spanien - The football world looks at the UEFA European Championship 2028, which will take place in a collaboration between England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. This information was recently announced after a meeting of the UEFA Executive Committee in Bilbao. All four host countries have to take part in the qualification to secure a place in the tournament, such as laola1.at reported.

The EM 2028 will be held in nine different stages from June 9 to July 9, 2029, with six of these stadiums in England and the others in Glasgow, Cardiff and Dublin. A total of 24 teams will take part in the tournament, with the qualification of twelve groups with four or five teams each. The twelve group winners and the eight best group runners-up qualify directly for the final round of the European Championship, such as Sportschau.de added.

peculiarities of qualification

Special attention applies to the reserved places for hosts who do not qualify. A total of two places are reserved for the two best not qualified hosts. If all four hosts play through the qualification, the number of open places for the play-offs would be correspondingly higher. In a scenario in which two hosts fail, there are only two places for the play-offs, while three places are available in the failure of a host. This could lead to an exciting competition in the play-offs, as the remaining group runners-up and the best-placed non-qualified group winners of the Nations League 2026/27 fight for the remaining places, such as Laola1.at explained.

The draw of qualification groups will take place in a transparent procedure. The four hosts are drawn into different groups, which could increase their chances of successful qualifications. Depending on the sporting performance, the following scenarios could occur in the final round: If all four hosts qualify for the tournament, all four teams at the event would be at the event, such as Sportschau.de reported.

comparison with previous tournaments

topics related to qualifications are also relevant in the context of the previous European Championships. At the European Championship 2024, which is considered high quality, 20 of the 24 participants were determined by a qualification tournament, while three more were added via a play-off system. Here, too, Germany was automatically qualified as a host, which represents an interesting comparison to the hosts of the EM 2028. The qualification games of the EM 2024 took place between March and November 2023, which promises a similar intensive phase as the upcoming qualification for the EM 2028, as on Wikipedia can be read.