England have requested to go through qualification for Euro 2028, despite their joint hosting of the tournament as part of a UK and Ireland bid which will be rubber-stamped by Uefa on Tuesday.
The FA is keen to keep the team competitive in the run-up to the finals with the Euro 2024 hosts, Germany, currently struggling in warm-up friendlies. There are also concerns over the level of opposition England would be able to secure if they were limited to friendlies.
The joint bid means that five nations – England, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales – will host the event, with Uefa reserving two “safety net” berths for host teams that do not qualify on merit. If more than two sides fall short, only the two with the best record will get a place – so it is possible for host nations to miss out.
The collective bid will make its presentation to Uefa’s executive committee on Tuesday morning but is unopposed to host the tournament in five years’ time. Turkey withdrew its candidacy last week to focus on a joint bid for the 2032 finals with Italy.
Ten stadiums were included in the UK and Ireland’s bid submission in April. Six of the venues are in England – Wembley, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the Etihad Stadium, St James’ Park, Villa Park and Everton’s new home at Bramley-Moore Dock.
The redeveloped Casement Park in Belfast, the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Hampden Park in Glasgow and the Principality Stadium in Cardiff are the other grounds included in the submission.
Senior Uefa sources have indicated the importance of another European Championship in a major football market, following on from next year’s tournament in Germany. European football’s governing body is seeking to further boost its reserves after the financial shock of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The five nations released a joint statement last week following Turkey’s withdrawal, stating they had a “compelling” and “ground-breaking” proposal for Uefa to consider, which would deliver “lasting legacies” across the whole of Ireland and the UK.
Bid leaders estimate that the 2028 tournament is projected to generate around €3bn (£2.6bn) of economic benefit for the five host nations. There are nevertheless some major issues that need to be addressed over the next four years.
The Casement Park site is currently derelict, with plans by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) to redevelop it into a 34,000-capacity venue mired in controversy, legal challenges and delays.
The GAA is part-funding the project but has yet to reach an agreement with Stormont on how to cover a multimillion-pound shortfall. The cost of the project, initially £77.5m, is now believed to have spiralled well above £100m.
Wembley would be expected to host the final in 2028, if not both semi-finals as well. It will be another major test for the 90,000-capacity venue after the chaos surrounding its hosting of the Euro 2020 final.
The FA chair, Debbie Hewitt, said in June: “One of the things I am absolutely convinced Uefa’s Exco will ask us is: ‘How can you assure us nobody will storm the turnstiles?’ We have to convince every one of those Exco members we have not only thought about it, but that we have planned for it.”
Source: The Guardian
