Newcastle United’s St James’ Park given Euro 2028 boost - but Sunderland set to miss out

The UK & Ireland have submitted their final bid to host the tournament with ten venues picked to host matches. Newcastle United’s St James’ Park has been picked among the stadiums across England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

Wembley, Villa Park, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the Etihad Stadium and Everton’s new stadium join St James’ Park as the venues in England chosen. Sunderland’s Stadium of Light and Anfield were among the stadiums in the running to be selected, however, they were not selected in this final list.

The Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Belfast’s Casement Park, Cardiff’s Principality Stadium and Glasgow’s Hampden Park have been listed as the venues outside England to host games. The next European Championships will be hosted solely in Germany after Euro 2020, that was delayed a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was played in various venues across Europe.

A statement from the joint bid said: “The UK and Ireland share a proud reputation as world-leading event destinations which have successfully staged some of the biggest global sporting tournaments – backed by strong government support. This includes the recent record-breaking UEFA Women’s EURO 2022.Our vision – ‘Football for all, Football for good. Football for the future’ – is a promise to help our Associations and UEFA grow a more diverse and inclusive game as well as connect with new audiences and the next generation.”

Turkey are also in the running to host the tournament with a final decision on the host country anticipated in September.