UK and Ireland confirm bid to host Euro 2028 has been submitted
Two of England's most famous stadiums won't play host, while two that haven't been built yet will - as Ian Woods explains
The UK and Ireland's bid for hosting the Men's European Championship in 2028 has been formally submitted.
The bid is a joint effort involving England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
“Our pioneering five-way partnership will deliver a record-breaking and unforgettable UEFA Euro,” Debbie Hewitt, chair of UK and Ireland bid, said in a statement.
“We continue to invest £50million (57m euros) annually into grassroots football development across our five associations."
The winning bid is set to be decided in September.
Where would the matches be played?
Wembley, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, St James’ Park, Villa Park and Everton’s new stadium will all host matches in England, as will Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium, which has been preferred to Old Trafford.
The Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Hampden Park in Glasgow, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium and Casement Park in Belfast – which requires building work – are the other venues being proposed in the bid.
Old Trafford, home of Manchester United, has been used by the Football Association on plenty of previous occasions – including during the rebuild of Wembley, as a venue during the Women’s Euro 2022 last summer and for the upcoming men’s Euro 2024 qualifier against North Macedonia in June.
However, the Etihad Stadium has been selected instead, with the official bid stating a capacity of 61,000, with Manchester City set to increase the current 53,400 seats in due course.
Casement Park has stood unused as a major sporting venue since 2013, with development work delayed over funding issues, but has still been included in the 10-stadia bid.
'Football for all'
The bid carries the slogan ‘Football for all, football for good, football for the future’, and claims 80 per cent of ticket-holders would be able to travel to matches by public transport.
It also predicts benefits of up to £2.6billion for the nations involved.
Didn't England just host a European championship?
England actually last hosted the Euros in 1996, while Hampden Park also hosted matches during the multi-national Euro 2020, played in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Wembley hosted the semi-final and final of Euro 2020, with England playing all but one of their matches at the national stadium en route to a penalty shoot-out loss to Italy in the final.
That game was marred by trouble outside the stadium and supporter issues inside Wembley, which led to a UEFA investigation ending in a £84,560 fine and having to play two home matches behind closed doors – with the second game suspended for two years.
Those involved in the Euro 2028 campaign will be hoping the issues from July 11, 2021 will not be factored into any decision on whether their bid is successful.
Who is the UK and Ireland's bid up against?
Turkey has also thrown its hat into the ring.
“UEFA today received three bid dossiers from member national associations interested in hosting the 2028 and 2032 European Championships,” a statement read.
“United Kingdom and Ireland (represented by the football associations of England, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales) submitted their bid dossier for EURO 2028.
The Turkish Football Federation submitted their bid dossier to host either EURO 2028 or 2032 and the Italian Football Federation submitted their bid dossier for EURO 2032.
“UEFA would like to thank all national associations for submitting their dossiers.
"In the forthcoming months, the UEFA administration will evaluate each of the bids, with the UEFA Executive Committee to vote on who has won the right to host both editions in October.”
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