Euro 2028 Qualifiers

Road to Euro 2028: Euro 2028 Qualifiers, Teams, Schedule, and Key Dates

The journey to UEFA Euro 2028 has officially begun. With anticipation already building, the Euro 2028 qualifiers will determine which national teams across Europe earn their place at one of football’s most prestigious tournaments. Hosted jointly by the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, Euro 2028 is set to be a landmark event in European football history.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Euro 2028 qualifiers, including how the qualification system works, the teams involved, and the key dates to mark on your calendar.

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How the Euro 2028 Qualifiers Work

Qualification Format

Similar to previous tournaments, the UEFA Euro 2028 qualifiers follow a structured group stage format. A total of 53 UEFA member nations (excluding the host countries) are set to compete for 21 available spots in the tournament.

The qualifiers are organized into 10 groups:

• 7 groups of 5 teams

• 3 groups of 6 teams

Each team plays every other team in their group twice (home and away), with matches spread across the international windows from March 2026 to November 2027.

The top two teams from each group (20 teams in total) will qualify automatically for Euro 2028. The remaining one spot will be filled through UEFA Nations League play-offs, based on performances in the 2026/27 Nations League campaign.

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Host Nations and Automatic Qualification

As Euro 2028 will be hosted jointly by England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, questions initially arose about how many host teams would be granted automatic qualification.

UEFA confirmed that two host nations would receive automatic qualification. While it is not officially declared which two will get those spots, it is widely speculated that England and Republic of Ireland are the likely choices due to infrastructure and historical participation.

The other host nations will still compete in the qualifiers and will need to earn their spots through performance.

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Euro 2028 Qualifiers: Key Dates

Here is a breakdown of the most important dates in the Euro 2028 qualification campaign: