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The UK and Ireland’s bid to host Euro 2028 has been formally approved after Turkey withdrew to co-host 2032 with Italy.
Ten stadia across the five nations will host the matches in five years’ time, with analysts projecting a €3bn ($A4.9 billion) boost to the host nations’ economies on the back of the tournament.
Both bids were given the official seal of approval by UEFA’s executive committee on Tuesday.
Wembley is set to host the final – and potentially both semi-finals – with the other English venues included in April’s final bid submission being the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Etihad Stadium, Villa Park, St James’ Park and Everton’s new ground at Bramley-Moore Dock.
England made the Final of the 2020 European Championships. (Photo by Carl Recine – Pool/Getty Images)
Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, Hampden Park in Glasgow, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium and a redeveloped Casement Park in Belfast will also host matches.
All five nations are expected to go through qualification for the tournament, with UEFA understood to be reserving two host-nation places for any teams that do not make it on merit.
The UK-Ireland bid would have been the overwhelming favourite to host Euro 2028 even if Turkey had remained in the race.
Senior UEFA sources have repeatedly stressed the importance of hosting another European Championship in a major market – following on from Euro 2024 in Germany – as essential to boosting UEFA’s finances in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, there will still be issues for the bid team to resolve over the next five years, with agreement yet to be reached on who will fund the Casement Park redevelopment though Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar wrote on X: “We’re willing to invest in the Aviva Stadium & Casement Park to ensure our stadia, north & south, are ready to welcome the world.
England previously hosted Euro 1996 and was one of 11 countries – including Scotland – that hosted matches at Euro 2020.
On a visit to England’s training ground, St George’s Park, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “I grew up with Euro 96 being one of the most amazing memories of my childhood. And we have a chance to do that all over again for lots more people, just like we did last year with the Lionesses.
“We host tournaments better than anyone else. It’s going to be a massive boost for the economy.
“We’re going to welcome millions of people to the country, and it’s going to inspire a whole new generation. So it’s great news and it was great to be here with the team and (manager) Gareth (Southgate) to celebrate.”
Politicians from the other four nations echoed his enthusiasm.
© AAP
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