The UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying stage will start Thursday as Kazakhstan will host Slovenia in an opening match in Group H in Astana. The match at Astana Arena will kick off at 1500GMT. On Thursday, defending European champions Italy will face EURO 2020 runners-up England in a Group C match at Naples’ Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. The Italy vs. England showdown will begin at 1945GMT. Italy, who beat England on penalties in the EURO 2020 final, will fight England, Ukraine, North Macedonia, and Malta in Group C. On Saturday, Trkiye will visit Armenia in a Group D match in Yerevan at 1700GMT. Trkiye are in the same group with Croatia, Wales, Armenia, and Latvia. The EURO 2024 finals in Germany will feature 24 teams. Germany have already qualified as hosts, while Russia have been suspended for the war on Ukraine. There are 53 teams split into 10 groups (A-J) in the EURO 2024 quals, seven groups of five teams and three groups of six teams. Twenty nations in the groups will book their places in the EURO 2024 finals. The best two teams in each group will qualify for the tournament. The rest three teams will join the EURO 2024 through the playoffs linked to the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League. The matchday one in the EURO 2024 qualifiers will start Thursday and will go through Saturday. It will be followed by the matchday two that will be held from Sunday to Tuesday, March 28. The EURO 2024 quals will have a break for several months following the matchday two as the third week will begin June 16. Matchday one fixtures: Thursday Kazakhstan vs. Slovenia Italy vs. England North Macedonia vs. Malta Denmark vs. Finland San Marino vs. Northern Ireland Portugal vs. Liechtenstein Slovakia vs. Luxembourg Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Iceland Friday Bulgaria vs. Montenegro France vs. Netherlands Gibraltar vs. Greece Czech Republic vs. Poland Moldova vs. Faroe Islands Sweden vs. Belgium Austria vs. Azerbaijan Serbia vs. Lithuania Saturday Scotland vs. Greek Cypriot administration Armenia vs. Trkiye Belarus vs. Switzerland Israel vs. Kosovo Spain vs. Norway Croatia vs. Wales Andorra vs. Romania
Source: Anadolu Agency