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England’s men’s team will embark on their Euro 2028 journey at the Manchester City’s stadium, assuming they achieve the anticipated entry for a championship taking place in the bulk of Britain and the Ireland.

City’s stadium has not hosted an Three Lions fixture since the spring of 2016, when the Turkish team were overcome 2-1 in a friendly, but is highly likely to welcome the national team for their first match on Saturday 10 June 2028.

England are set to play their last two group stage games at Wembley Stadium, but, if they top Group B, their round of 16 match would take place at St James’ Park. Placing second would mean beginning the playoffs at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Competition Launch and Demonstration

The tournament was inaugurated at an gathering in a London landmark on Wednesday evening. Senior figures from European football’s governing body and the host FAs were heckled as they entered the location by approximately 50 protesters, who urged Israel’s national side to be removed from the sport because of the Gaza crisis.

Signs were raised with slogans reading “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while demonstrators chanted: “Kick Israel out.”

Tournament Timeline

The opening game of Euro 2028 will be played at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital, on Friday 9 June, a match that will include the Welsh team if they make it.

Wembley Stadium will host the penultimate rounds and the championship match, which will be held on a Sunday in July 2028 with a kick-off time at late afternoon.

It is expected that an afternoon start, which will also be used for Champions League finals from the upcoming season, will cater to family audiences and help connect with a broader range of audiences.

Participating Countries

The Irish team are scheduled to play their opening match at the Aviva Stadium and Scotland would do the same at the national stadium of Scotland.

The national sides of all four hosts will take part in the qualification process; two automatic spots will be reserved for any that do not reach the tournament through the standard process.

Venues and Elimination Phase

Villa Park and Spurs’ ground finalize the nine tournament locations. Each one will hold at least one elimination game, with the last eight held at the national stadium of each host.

The qualifying draw will be conducted in the Northern Irish capital, which was removed as a venue city last year when it emerged Casement Park could not be redeveloped in time, on December 6, 2026.

Leadership Comment

“This will be a tournament for the fans and a festival of everything we love about the sport – its fervor and power to unite individuals.”

More than three million admissions, a all-time high for a men’s European Championship, are expected to be offered to fans.