Is it coming home? UK and Ireland bid to host Euro 2028 set to be unopposed after rivals pulled out
28 July 2023, 12:14 | Updated: 28 July 2023, 13:31
Britain has a straight run at hosting Euro 2028 after rival nations said they would focus on a future tournament.
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The four nations of the UK are bidding to host the European international football tournament with Ireland.
They faced competition from Turkey - which is understood to still technically be in the race - but Ankara and Italy have announced a joint bid for Euro 2032 instead.
That makes it less likely Turkey would attempt to host the preceding tournament, as doing so would almost certainly rule them out of being part of hosting the one after.
Continental governing body Uefa said: "Uefa confirms that it has received today a request from the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) to merge their individual bids into one joint bid to host Uefa EURO 2032.
"Uefa will now work with FIGC and TFF to ensure that the documentation to be submitted for their joint bid is compliant with the bidding requirements."
Uefa is set to decide on who will host the tournament on October 10.
Wembley held the final and a number of other games during Euro 2020, which was delayed by a year due to Covid.
That tournament was held across Europe as a celebration of the competition's 60th anniversary.
Before that, England held Euro 96, when the Three Lions were knocked out by Germany in the semifinal.
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But this time, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland would be host nations - the British countries all have their own football associations - along with Ireland.
The games would be held at London's Wembley stadium and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, at the Etihad in Manchester, Newcastle's St James' Park, Villa Park, and the under-construction Everton stadium in Liverpool.
Hampden Park, in Scotland, the Cardiff National Stadium, in Wales, and Casement Park in Belfast, which is being redeveloped, would also host alongside the Dublin Arena.
