UEFA Executive Committee meets, approves EURO 2028 qualifiers format

The UEFA Executive Committee met today in Bilbao, Spain, and approved the UEFA EURO 2028 Qualifiers system as well as finalised the club benefit distribution plan for the 2024–2028 cycle.

EURO 2028 Qualifiers format determined

The 24-team tournament, to be held in the United Kingdom and Ireland, will follow a familiar structure. There will be 12 qualifying groups of four or five teams each. From these, the 12 group winners and the eight best runners-up will qualify directly.

The host nations – England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales – will take part in the qualifiers and could secure automatic qualification if they fail to do so through the group stages. Up to two places will be reserved for the best host nations that do not qualify directly.

The remaining places will be determined through a play-off phase with the highest-ranked teams in the Nations League and the second-placed teams that did not qualify. The number of play-off matches will depend on the number of places used by the host nations.

The tournament schedule is expected to be published in the fall of 2025, with the full regulations by the end of the year.

Approved package for club benefits of 244 million euros

UEFA also confirmed a club benefits programme worth €244 million for the period 2024–2028. This includes €7 million left over from the previous cycle, of which €3 million will go towards increasing the benefits fund for UEFA Women's EURO 2025 from €6 million to €9 million.

The remaining amount will be divided into two parts: 104 million euros for clubs that release players for the Nations League and European qualifiers, and 140 million euros for clubs that release players for EURO 2028.

The next meeting of the UEFA Executive Committee will be held on September 11, 2025 in Tirana.

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