Euro 2028: UK and Republic of Ireland announce joint bid

England players celebrate scoring in the Euro 2020 final, but it wasn't to be as they lost to Italy on penalties

The UK and the Republic of Ireland have launched a joint bid to host the 2028 European Championships.

The football associations have agreed to not now bid for the World Cup in 2030 but instead focus on a joint Euros bid.

The decision was made partly because a study looking at the World Cup 2030 bid found hosting the Euros would cost less than the World Cup and bring similar advantages to the five nations: - with matches taking place in England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The study looked at the money it would raise and the likely costs of hosting major international tournaments.

UEFA Euro 2028 is set to take place over 51 matches.

Who can bid to host the Euros?

Countries bidding for the Euros need to show they have ten suitable stadiums including a minimum of one with 60,000 capacity and at least one preferably two with 50,000 seat capacity.

Wembley Stadium in London has a 90,000 seat capacity, the Principality Stadium in Cardiff can seat 74,500, Croke Park in the Republic of Ireland is 69,500 while Celtic Park has 60,000 capacity.

The UK and the Republic of Ireland are able to put in a joint bid because they are allowed as long as the countries are close enough to each other.

The deadline for the joint bid for Euro 2028 is on 23 March and the decision of who will host is set to be announced by Uefa in September 2023