Euro 2028 Qualifying Draw: Sunday, Dec. 6 in Belfast, Start Time in UK, ET and PT

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) says the Euro 2028 qualifying draw takes place on Sunday, Dec. 6, 2026, at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Belfast, starting at 17:00 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), which is noon Eastern Time (ET) and 9 a.m. Pacific Time (PT). UEFA gives the time as 17:00 GMT (18:00 Central European Time, CET) and its 2026 European football calendar lists “6 December” for the qualifying group stage draw in Belfast. The table below converts the start to 11 time zones. Pots, draw rules and a broadcaster are not yet announced.

Euro 2028 qualifying draw time in every time zone

The United Kingdom is on GMT in December, so UK time matches UEFA’s GMT time. U.S. clocks are on standard time. The conversions are ours, from UEFA’s 17:00 GMT.

Place	Draw start on Sun., Dec. 6, 2026
UK (GMT)	5 p.m.
Ireland	5 p.m.
Central Europe (CET)	6 p.m.
Eastern Time (ET)	Noon
Central Time (CT)	11 a.m.
Mountain Time (MT)	10 a.m.
Pacific Time (PT)	9 a.m.
Alaska	8 a.m.
Hawaii	7 a.m.
Newfoundland	1:30 p.m.
India Standard Time (IST)	10:30 p.m.
Sydney, Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT)	4 a.m., Mon., Dec. 7

Mark Sunday on the December 2026 printable calendar. UEFA’s announcement gives only the start time, not how long the draw runs.

How does Euro 2028 qualifying work?

UEFA’s announcement of the draw describes “a new consolidated format for qualifying, with teams drawn in 12 groups of four or five teams who play each other home and away.” The group stage runs from March 2027 to November 2027. Group winners qualify directly; runners-up “will either qualify directly or participate in play-off matches with UEFA Nations League teams,” and the play-off round “would be played in March 2028.”

UEFA’s May 21, 2025 qualification system adds the numbers. Our arithmetic from them is in the table.

Step	Places	Source detail
12 group winners	12	Qualify directly
Eight best runners-up	8	Qualify directly; 20 teams in all with the winners
Host-nation places	2	Reserved for the two best-ranked hosts not already qualified as group winners or best runners-up
Play-offs	2 to 4	UEFA says the number “may vary between two and four”
Final tournament	24	Total teams, per UEFA’s tournament guide

Twenty direct places plus up to four others make 24. The two host places and the play-off places come from the same four, so each host place used leaves one fewer for the play-offs.

Who plays in the qualifying draw, and why Belfast?

UEFA says hosts England, Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales also take part in qualifying, “drawn into separate groups.” Northern Ireland is not named among those qualifying hosts; UEFA describes it as a partner that “will contribute to the tournament’s success and celebration,” and the draw is held at the ICC in Belfast. The 2028 tournament itself runs from June 9 to July 9, 2028, with 24 teams in six groups.

For the other home-nation games before the qualifying draw, see our Nations League November 2026 fixtures and kick-off times.

Euro 2028 qualifying timeline from the draw to the final

Date	What happens	Source
Sun., Dec. 6, 2026	Qualifying draw, Belfast, 17:00 GMT	UEFA, Sept. 17, 2026
March 2027	Qualifying group stage begins	UEFA, Sept. 17, 2026
November 2027	Qualifying group stage ends	UEFA, Sept. 17, 2026
March 2028	Play-off round, if needed	UEFA, Sept. 17, 2026
Fri., June 9, 2028	Group A opening game, National Stadium of Wales, Cardiff	UEFA schedule, Sept. 17, 2026
Tue., July 4 and Wed., July 5, 2028	Semi-finals	UEFA schedule
Sun., July 9, 2028	Final	UEFA schedule

UEFA’s schedule places the final week at Wembley in London. In the final tournament, the top two in each of six groups and the four best third-placed teams reach the round of 16, per UEFA’s tournament guide. Add the dates to a 2027 printable yearly calendar; the opener and final are in June and July 2028. For another football tournament on U.S. clocks, see our Women’s World Cup 2027 schedule.

What has UEFA not announced yet?

• Pots and seeding for the draw.
• Draw restrictions.
• Exact qualifying matchdays; UEFA says only March to November 2027.
• Exact play-off dates; UEFA says only March 2028.
• The broadcaster or stream for the draw.
• The kick-off time of the opening match on June 9, 2028.

For other European football in December on U.S. clocks, see our Champions League December matchday 6 kick-off times.

How did the Euro 2024 qualifying draw compare?

For the last cycle, UEFA’s report says the Euro 2024 qualifying draw “took place at 12:00 CET on Sunday 9 October 2022” in Frankfurt. That was the 2022 draw; the 2026 time is 18:00 CET.

Free Euro 2028 draw day sheet

Our one-page sheet lists the draw time in U.S. zones, the opener and final dates, and 12 empty boxes for Groups A to L to fill in as the draw happens.