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England’s men’s team will initiate their UEFA Euro 2028 journey at the Manchester City’s stadium, on the condition that they secure the expected passage for a championship hosted across most of the United Kingdom and the Ireland.

The Etihad Stadium has not welcomed an English men’s match since eight years ago, when Turkey were defeated 2-1 in a warm-up game, but is expected to stage the national team for their inaugural game on a Saturday in June 2028.

England are set to play their concluding group fixtures at Wembley Stadium, but, if they top the preliminary round, their knockout stage opener would occur at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. Finishing second would mean commencing the playoffs at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Tournament Opening and Protest

The championship was unveiled at an gathering in central London on Wednesday evening. High-ranking officials from European football’s governing body and the host football associations were confronted as they arrived the site by approximately 50 pro-Palestine demonstrators, who urged Israel’s national side to be expelled from global football because of the situation in Gaza.

Banners were held up with messages reading “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while protesters called out: “Kick Israel out.”

Championship Fixture List

The opening game of the European Championship will be played at the Principality Stadium in the Welsh capital, on a Friday in June 2028, a fixture that will feature the Welsh team if they make it.

Wembley will host the two semi-final matches and the championship match, which will be held on Sunday 9 July with a start time at late afternoon.

It is hoped that an afternoon start, which will also be used for Champions League finals from the following campaign, will attract households and help reach a broader range of fans.

Participating Countries

The Republic of Ireland are scheduled to play their opening match at the Dublin Arena and Scotland would play similarly at Glasgow’s Hampden Park.

All four host countries’ teams will enter the qualification process; two guaranteed slots will be held in reserve for any that miss out on the finals through that route.

Venues and Playoffs

Aston Villa’s stadium and The North London arena finalize the nine tournament locations. All 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 Belfast, which was excluded as a host city last year when it was revealed Casement Park could not be upgraded in time, on 6 December 2026.

Official Statement

“This will be a tournament for the followers and a celebration of everything we value about the football – its emotion and capacity to unite individuals.”

Over 3 million admissions, a all-time high for a men’s European Championship, are expected to be released to attendees.