England and Home Nations will have to qualify for Euro 2028 after UEFA change | OneFootball

England wanted to be involved in qualification to help maintain a competitive edge

Host nations England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales will not automatically qualify for Euro 2028, UEFA have confirmed.

Instead, 20 nations will qualify, with 12 as group winners and eight as the best-placed runners-up.

Two of the remaining four spots will be allocated to the two best-ranked host nations who did not qualify automatically.

The final two places will be decided via play-offs for the remaining runners-up in the group phase.

England, beaten finalists in the last two Euros, had asked to be part of the qualification process in order to maintain a competitive edge heading into the finals.

Nine stadiums across the UK have been earmarked as host venues, including Wembley, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Everton’s newly built home ground, Glasgow’s Hampden Park, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium and Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.

A UEFA statement said: "The UEFA executive committee has confirmed the qualification format for Euro 2028, to be held across nine venues in the UK and Ireland with 24 participating teams.

"As in the current 2024-26 European qualifiers, 12 qualifying groups will be formed of four or five teams. Hosts England, Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales will also participate in qualifying, drawn into separate groups.

"The 12 group winners and 8 best runners-up (20 teams) will advance directly to the Euro 2028 final tournament.

"Two spots in the final tournament will be reserved for the two best-ranked host nations who are not qualified as group winners or best runners-up after the completion of the qualifying group stage."

Additional reporting: PA