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The football associations of England, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales have submitted a joint bid to host Euro 2028 to the European governing body, UEFA.
The Expression of Interest comes on deadline day, with The Times in London reporting earlier this week that the UK and Ireland bid was set to be unopposed.
A joint statement from the five associations read: “We believe Euro 2028 would be one of the greatest sporting events ever held in the UK and Ireland.
“The governments of the UK, Ireland, Scotland and Wales have confirmed their support for the EOI submission and, given the Northern Ireland Executive is currently not meeting formally, officials there continue to observe the process closely,” they said in a joint statement on Wednesday.
The Football Associations of England, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales have today submitted a joint ‘Expression of Interest’ to host UEFA EURO 2028.
— The FA (@FA) March 23, 2022
“Over the coming months, we will develop our proposals further, subject to the publication by UEFA of the full technical specification,” the statement said.
“This includes engaging in discussions with possible host cities and stadia to define the optimum tournament, model and conducting full costs and benefits analysis.”
UEFA said in October last year that countries interested in hosting the Euro 2028 Championship must confirm their bid by March 23.
The list of bidders will be announced in April while the hosts will be appointed in September 2023.
Minimum requirements include having 10 stadiums available, with one having a capacity of at least 60,000 and two venues with at least 50,000 seats.
Europe’s football governing body also said automatic qualification as hosts would not be guaranteed if more than two countries submitted a joint bid.
The 2024 tournament will be hosted by Germany.
UEFA, which could expand the tournament to 32 teams, is expected to make a formal decision on April 7.