FA don't want England to automatically qualify for Euro 2028 as UEFA confirm UK and Ireland as hosts

The FA do not want England to automatically qualify for Euro 2028 even though they have been confirmed as joint hosts for the tournament.

UEFA confirmed on Tuesday that the UK and the Republic of Ireland would host Euro 2028, after Turkey and Italy were announced as joint hosts for Euro 2032.

England, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales will jointly host the 2028 edition of the tournament, with 10 venues across the five nations staging matches.

But the unusual decision to allow so many nations to host the tournament has presented a potential issue for UEFA.

Host nations are typically awarded automatic qualification for the tournament. But with five countries staging matches, and only 24 teams taking part in the tournament, questions have been raised over whether to allow all the host nations automatic qualification.

According to The Times, UEFA plan to only allow a maximum of two automatic qualification spots.

The proposals would see all five host nations participate in the qualifying phase, with the two automatic spots reserved for teams that fail to qualify for the finals.

If three or four host nations fail to make it, the 'best' two teams would be awarded automatic spots.

It is currently unclear how UEFA plans to determine who is deemed 'best' if more than two nations fail to qualify. There is the possibility that if England finish the qualification stage with less points than several other co-hosts who also fail to qualify out of their group, they could miss out on the tournament.

However, if the automatic spots are determined by UEFA's coefficient rankings, England are likely to be safe due to their position as one of the strongest teams in Europe.

The BBC has reported that the FA are set to formally request for England to take part in qualification.

It is claimed that England want to go through the formal qualification process to prepare better for the tournament.

"This is because they think it would provide the team with better preparation for the tournament than a series of friendlies," wrote BBC reporter Dan Roan.

While the Three Lions would be expected to breeze through qualifying, stranger things have happened.

SPORTbible are on WhatsApp! We've launched a dedicated news channel to send you the latest news, features and plenty more directly on WhatsApp and all you need to do to sign up is click through to our one-way broadcast channel here for 'SPORTbible News' to appear in the 'Updates' tab on your WhatsApp.