UEFA has officially awarded the hosting rights for the EURO 2028 and 2032 tournaments

Joint bids have become a trend in major football events. The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) announced yesterday that the EURO 2028 tournament will be hosted by the United Kingdom and Ireland, while EURO 2032 has been awarded to a joint bid from Italy and Turkey, which was formed earlier this summer. These decisions were officially announced during a brief ceremony by UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, confirming the trend of hosting major sporting events collectively, which represents the only chance for some countries to host them.

The ten stadiums that will host the 2028 edition are already known, as they are used for both football and rugby. They include Wembley Stadium in London, City Stadium in Manchester, St James' Park in Newcastle, Hampden Park in Glasgow, Dublin Arena, National Stadium in Cardiff, and Casement Park in Belfast.

The organization of EURO 2032 raised some questions, as Italy and Turkey had separately attempted to bid for hosting the event for a long time. However, in July, they decided to join forces without disclosing the host cities. While the FIFA World Cup will undergo a format change in 2026 with 48 participating teams, the UEFA European Championship will maintain its format with 24 teams and 51 matches, compared to the 104 matches in the World Cup.

UEFA has been a pioneer in the use of joint bids, starting with EURO 2000, which was hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands, followed by EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland, EURO 2012 in Poland and Ukraine, and the 2020 (2021) edition, which was initially planned to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the tournament and was held in 11 cities across the continent. EURO 2024 will take place in Germany, from June 14 to July 14, 2024.