2026 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification

2026 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification

Tournament details
Dates	Qualifying round: 8 October – 18 November 2025 Elite round: 25 March – 31 March 2026
Teams	53 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Matches played	78
Goals scored	258 (3.31 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Louis Buffon Francis Onyeka (6 goals each)
← 2025 2027 → All statistics correct as of 18 November 2025.

The 2026 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification is an under-19 men's national football team competition that will determine the seven teams joining the automatically qualified hosts Wales in the 2026 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament.^[1]

Russia were excluded from the tournament due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Therefore, excluding hosts Wales, 53 teams entered this qualification competition, which consists of the Qualifying round played in September–November 2025, followed by the Elite round played in spring 2026. Spain received a bye to the Elite round and did not participate in the Qualifying round. Players born on or after 1 January 2007 are eligible to participate.

The qualification consists of two rounds; both consist of several groups, which are played as single-round-robin mini-tournaments, with one team from each group selected as the host after the draw.

• Qualifying round: Apart from Spain, which received a bye to the Elite round as the team with the highest seeding coefficient, the remaining 52 teams were drawn into 13 groups of four. The 13 group winners, the 13 runners-up, and the best third-placed team will advance to the Elite round.
• Elite round: 28 teams will be drawn into seven groups of four. The group winners will qualify for the final tournament.

In a group, teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Articles 14.01 and 14.02):^[2]

1. Points in head to head matches among tied teams
2. Goal difference in head to head matches among tied teams
3. Goals scored in head to head matches among tied teams
4. If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams
5. Goal difference in all group matches
6. Goals scored in all group matches
7. Penalty shoot-out if only two teams have the same number of points, and they met in the last round of the group and are tied after applying all criteria above (not used if more than two teams have the same number of points, or if their rankings are not relevant for qualification for the next stage)
8. Disciplinary points (red card = 3 points, yellow card = 1 point, expulsion for 2 yellow cards in one match = 3 points)
9. UEFA coefficient ranking for the Qualifying round draw

To determine the best third-placed team from the Qualifying round, the results against the teams in fourth place are discarded. The following criteria are applied (Regulations Articles 15.01 and 15.02):^[2]

1. Points
2. Goal difference
3. Goals scored
4. Disciplinary points
5. UEFA coefficient ranking for the Qualifying round draw

The draw for the Qualifying round was held on 5 December 2024, at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.^[3]

The teams were seeded according to their coefficient ranking, calculated based on the following:^[4]

• 2019 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)
• 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)
• 2023 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)
• 2024 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)

Each group contains one team from Pot A, one team from Pot B, one team from Pot C, and one team from Pot D. On the basis of decisions taken by the UEFA Executive Committee and the UEFA Emergency Panel, valid at the time of the draw, the following countries cannot be drawn into the same group: Armenia and Azerbaijan, Belarus and Ukraine, Kosovo and Serbia, Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Final tournament hosts Team Coeff. Rank  Wales 5.333 —

Bye to Elite round Team Coeff. Rank  Spain 25.939 1

Teams entering Qualifying round^[4]

Pot A Team Coeff. Rank  Italy 25.333 2  France 23.833 3  Portugal 21.667 4  Norway 18.278 5  England 15.944 6  Israel 15.556 7  Ukraine 14.722 8  Czech Republic 14.056 9  Republic of Ireland 13.444 10  Denmark 12.656 11  Turkey 12.222 12  Romania 11.833 13  Serbia 11.667 14

Pot B Team Coeff. Rank  Belgium 10.900 15  Germany 10.833 16  Netherlands TH 10.333 17  Greece 10.167 18  Slovakia 10.167 19  Iceland 10.000 20  Croatia 9.833 21  Poland 9.333 22  Austria 8.833 23  Scotland 8.500 24  Hungary 8.333 25   Switzerland 8.000 26  Northern Ireland 7.500 27

Pot C Team Coeff. Rank  Slovenia 7.333 28  Georgia 6.667 29  Bosnia and Herzegovina 6.500 30  Finland 6.500 31  Latvia 6.167 32  Sweden 5.833 33  Armenia 5.333 34  Malta 4.667 35  Montenegro 4.500 36  North Macedonia 4.167 37  Belarus 4.000 38  Cyprus 3.833 39  Bulgaria 3.667 40

Pot D Team Coeff. Rank  Azerbaijan 3.500 41  Kosovo 3.333 42  Luxembourg 3.333 43  Lithuania 2.667 44  Estonia 2.333 45  Faroe Islands 1.333 46  Albania 1.333 47  Andorra 1.000 48  Kazakhstan 0.667 49  Moldova 0.667 50  Liechtenstein 0.333 51  San Marino 0.000 52  Gibraltar 0.000 53

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Netherlands (H)	3	3	0	0	13	3	+10	9	Elite round
2	Kazakhstan	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	4
3	Republic of Ireland	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3
4	Cyprus	3	0	1	2	1	9	−8	1

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	France	3	3	0	0	8	2	+6	9	Elite round
2	Hungary (H)	3	1	1	1	5	3	+2	4[a]
3	Bulgaria	3	1	1	1	5	3	+2	4[a]
4	Faroe Islands	3	0	0	3	0	10	−10	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Turkey (H)	3	3	0	0	11	1	+10	9	Elite round
2	Greece	3	2	0	1	11	2	+9	6
3	Belarus	3	1	0	2	5	4	+1	3
4	Liechtenstein	3	0	0	3	0	20	−20	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Austria	3	3	0	0	8	1	+7	9	Elite round
2	Slovenia (H)	3	1	1	1	6	4	+2	4
3	Israel	3	0	2	1	3	5	−2	2
4	Luxembourg	3	0	1	2	1	8	−7	1

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ukraine	3	3	0	0	9	0	+9	9	Elite round
2	Slovakia	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	4
3	Montenegro	3	1	0	2	1	6	−5	3
4	Albania (H)	3	0	1	2	0	4	−4	1

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Croatia (H)	3	3	0	0	14	1	+13	9	Elite round
2	Serbia	3	2	0	1	8	5	+3	6
3	Georgia	3	1	0	2	2	5	−3	3
4	Gibraltar	3	0	0	3	0	13	−13	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Romania (H)	3	2	1	0	8	2	+6	7	Elite round
2	Finland	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
3	Iceland	3	1	0	2	5	6	−1	3
4	Andorra	3	1	0	2	2	7	−5	3

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	England	3	3	0	0	13	0	+13	9	Elite round
2	Latvia	3	1	1	1	4	10	−6	4
3	Lithuania (H)	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3
4	Scotland	3	0	1	2	3	8	−5	1

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Italy (H)	3	2	1	0	9	0	+9	7	Elite round
2	Poland	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6
3	Moldova	3	1	0	2	2	10	−8	3
4	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3	0	1	2	1	3	−2	1

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Denmark	3	2	0	1	13	1	+12	6[a]	Elite round
2	Sweden	3	2	0	1	3	1	+2	6[a]
3	Switzerland (H)	3	2	0	1	4	7	−3	6[a]
4	San Marino	3	0	0	3	0	11	−11	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Portugal (H)	3	1	2	0	6	3	+3	5	Elite round
2	Belgium	3	1	2	0	3	2	+1	5
3	North Macedonia	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	3
4	Estonia	3	0	2	1	2	4	−2	2

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany	3	3	0	0	14	1	+13	9	Elite round
2	Norway (H)	3	2	0	1	9	2	+7	6
3	Kosovo	3	1	0	2	3	9	−6	3
4	Armenia	3	0	0	3	0	14	−14	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Czech Republic	3	2	1	0	12	3	+9	7	Elite round
2	Northern Ireland	3	2	0	1	2	4	−2	6
3	Azerbaijan	3	1	0	2	3	8	−5	3
4	Malta (H)	3	0	1	2	3	5	−2	1

---

---

To determine the best third-placed team from the Qualifying round, only the results of the third-placed teams against the first and second-placed teams in their group are taken into account, as stated in the Regulations Articles 15.01 and 15.02.^[2]

Pos	Grp	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	10	Switzerland	2	1	0	1	1	7	−6	3	Elite round
2	2	Bulgaria	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	1
3	4	Israel	2	0	1	1	3	5	−2	1
4	1	Republic of Ireland	2	0	0	2	2	5	−3	0
5	8	Lithuania	2	0	0	2	1	4	−3	0
6	7	Iceland	2	0	0	2	2	6	−4	0
7	6	Georgia	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4	0
8	11	North Macedonia	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4	0
9	3	Belarus	2	0	0	2	0	4	−4	0
10	13	Azerbaijan	2	0	0	2	1	7	−6	0
11	5	Montenegro	2	0	0	2	0	6	−6	0
12	9	Moldova	2	0	0	2	1	10	−9	0
13	12	Kosovo	2	0	0	2	0	9	−9	0

The draw for the Elite round will be held on 10 December 2025 at 11:00 CET at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.^[5]

The teams will be seeded according to their results in the Qualifying round. Spain, which received a bye to the Elite round, will be automatically seeded to the top position in Pot 1. Each group will contain one team from Pot 1, one team from Pot 2, one team from Pot 3, and one team from Pot 4. Winners and runners-up from the same Qualifying round group could not be drawn in the same group, but the best third-placed team could be drawn in the same group as winners or runners-up from the same Qualifying round group.

To determine this ranking, the results against the teams in fourth place were discarded and the following criteria were applied (Regulations Articles 15.01 and 15.02):^[2][6]

1. Position in a Qualifying round group
2. Points
3. Goal difference
4. Goals scored
5. Disciplinary points
6. UEFA coefficient ranking for the Qualifying round draw

Teams entering Elite round^[7]

Pos	Grp	Team	RQ	Pld	Pts	GD	GS	DP	Coeff	Seeding
1	Bye	Spain	—	—	—	—	—			Pot 1
2	13	Czech Republic	1st	2	6	9	10
3	9	Italy	1st	2	6	9	9	3
4	8	England	1st	2	6	9	9	4
5	12	Germany	1st	2	6	6	7
6	5	Ukraine	1st	2	6	6	6
7	6	Croatia	1st	2	6	5	6
8	1	Netherlands	1st	2	6	3	6			Pot 2
9	4	Austria	1st	2	6	3	4	6
10	3	Turkey	1st	2	6	3	4	7
11	2	France	1st	2	6	2	4
12	11	Portugal	1st	2	4	3	5
13	7	Romania	1st	2	4	3	4
14	10	Denmark	1st	2	3	6	7
15	7	Finland	2nd	2	4	1	4			Pot 3
16	11	Belgium	2nd	2	4	1	2
17	12	Norway	2nd	2	3	3	5
18	3	Greece	2nd	2	3	1	3
19	5	Slovakia	2nd	2	3	0	3
20	9	Poland	2nd	2	3	0	2	2
21	1	Kazakhstan	2nd	2	3	0	2	7
22	10	Sweden	2nd	2	3	0	1			Pot 4
23	6	Serbia	2nd	2	3	−1	4
24	13	Northern Ireland	2nd	2	3	−3	1
25	8	Latvia	2nd	2	3	−6	2
26	2	Hungary	2nd	2	1	−1	2	6	8.333
27	4	Slovenia	2nd	2	1	−1	2	6	7.333
28	10	Switzerland	3rd	2	3	−6	1

Times are CET (UTC+1) as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Austria	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Greece	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Sweden	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	England	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Portugal (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Poland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Serbia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Croatia (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	France	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Norway	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Switzerland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Czech Republic (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Denmark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Belgium	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Latvia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ukraine	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Romania (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Kazakhstan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Northern Ireland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Italy (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Turkey	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Slovakia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Hungary	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Spain (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Final tournament
2	Netherlands	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Finland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Slovenia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

---

---

In the Qualifying round, there have been 258 goals scored in 78 matches, for an average of 3.31 goals per match (as of 18 November 2025).

6 goals

5 goals

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

• Official website of UEFA Under-19 Championship