UEFA has announced that nations will be allowed to have 26-man squads for this summer’s European Championship in Germany. The European governing body’s executive committee confirmed the increase from 23 players on Friday, following the national competitions committee’s favorable vote in April.
Teams were permitted 26-man squads at Euro 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19, but UEFA had initially planned to revert to 23-player squads for Euro 2024.
Expanded squads were also allowed at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar because it took place in the middle of the domestic season.
Participating teams are not required to name an extended squad but must submit a list of at least 23 players to UEFA by June 7.
The news will be welcomed by several international managers who criticized the idea of reducing squad sizes for the tournament. Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman called it “absurd.”
England manager Gareth Southgate, who previously favored 23-man squads, changed his stance due to the high number of injuries in the Premier League this season. He has already announced his squad on May 21, two days after the end of the Premier League season.
Euro 2024 begins on June 14 with Scotland taking on hosts Germany in the first game, while England’s campaign starts on June 16 against Serbia.
When asked about supporting the push for bigger squads, Southgate replied:
Given our current situation, absolutely! We need to make the best selection decisions based on what we know, and some of those decisions are going to be medical. In the past two tournaments, we’ve managed to make the right calls, allowing players time to recover from injuries after naming them in the squad. However, with a 23-player limit, this becomes significantly more challenging.
