There are no last-minute surprises: the battle for the 2028 Euro soccer tournament will be between Turkey and an alliance of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The two candidates were already known. They have confirmed their ambition by formally submitting their file to UEFA. The body announced it on Wednesday 12 April, specifying that the project selected would be decided in October after a vote of its Executive Committee. The British project is based on ten stadiums in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Eire. Wembley and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, St James’ Park in Newcastle, Villa Park in Birmingham, Everton Stadium in Liverpool and Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium have been selected as venues in England, while Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, Glasgow’s Hampden Park, Belfast’s Casement Park and Dublin’s Aviva Stadium complete the list. Turkey, meanwhile, is playing both sides of the fence, as it is also a candidate to host the 2032 European Football Championship, where it is competing with Italy. Turkey has already been a candidate five times but has never hosted the competition. England, on the other hand, hosted it in 1996. Russia had originally planned to enter the race, but was ruled out by UEFA after the start of the invasion of Ukraine, with the sanctions imposed by the continental body also including a ban on bidding for international events, in addition to the suspension of national clubs and teams.
