2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
Tournament details
Dates25 March 2017 – 20 November 2018
Teams54 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Matches played274
Goals scored833 (3.04 per match)
Top scorer(s)Poland Dawid Kownacki (11 goals)
← 2017
2021 →

The 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying competition was a men's under-21 football competition that determined the 11 teams joining the automatically qualified hosts Italy in the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship final tournament (the other co-hosts San Marino would not qualify automatically).[1]

Apart from Italy, all remaining 54 UEFA member national teams entered the qualifying competition,[2] with Gibraltar and Kosovo making their debuts. Players born on or after 1 January 1996 are eligible to participate.

Format

The qualifying competition consists of two rounds:[3]

Tiebreakers

In the qualifying group stage, 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 Article 14.01):[3]

  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. Away goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  5. 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;
  6. Goal difference in all group matches;
  7. Goals scored in all group matches;
  8. Away goals scored in all group matches;
  9. Disciplinary points (red card = 3 points, yellow card = 1 point, expulsion for two yellow cards in one match = 3 points);
  10. UEFA coefficient for the qualifying group stage draw.

To determine the four best runners-up from the qualifying group stage, the results against the teams in sixth place are discarded. The following criteria are applied (Regulations Article 14.02):[3]

  1. Points;
  2. Goal difference;
  3. Goals scored;
  4. Away goals scored;
  5. Disciplinary points;
  6. UEFA coefficient for the qualifying group stage draw.

In the play-offs, the team that scores more goals on aggregate over the two legs qualifies for the final tournament. If the aggregate score is level, the away goals rule is applied, i.e., the team that scores more goals away from home over the two legs advances. If away goals are also equal, extra time is played. The away goals rule is again applied after extra time, i.e., if there are goals scored during extra time and the aggregate score is still level, the visiting team advances by virtue of more away goals scored. If no goals are scored during extra time, the tie is decided by penalty shoot-out (Regulations Article 19.01).[3]

Schedule

The qualifying matches are played on dates that fall within the FIFA International Match Calendar.[2]

Stage FIFA International Dates
Qualifying group stage 20–28 March 2017
5–13 June 2017
28 August – 5 September 2017
2–10 October 2017
6–14 November 2017
19–27 March 2018
3–11 September 2018
8–16 October 2018
Play-offs 12–20 November 2018

Qualifying group stage

Draw

The draw for the qualifying group stage was held on 26 January 2017, 09:00 CET (UTC+1), at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.[4][5]

The teams were seeded according to their coefficient ranking, calculated based on the following:[6]

Each group contained one team from each of Pots A–F. For political reasons, Spain and Gibraltar, Serbia and Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo would not be drawn in the same group.[2]

Final tournament hosts
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Italy 35,546 6
Teams entering qualifying group stage
Pot A
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Germany 39,037 1
 Portugal 38,378 2
 England 36,621 3
 Spain 36,536 4
 Denmark 35,590 5
 France 34,262 7
 Sweden 34,259 8
 Czech Republic 33,690 9
 Serbia 31,060 10
Pot B
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Slovakia 31,057 11
 Israel 30,786 12
 Netherlands 29,817 13
 Austria 29,406 14
 Croatia 28,239 15
 Belgium 28,237 16
 Poland 28,102 17
  Switzerland 27,882 18
 Slovenia 27,372 19
Pot C
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Ukraine 27,372 20
 Norway 26,830 21
 Russia 26,414 22
 Turkey 25,927 23
 Romania 25,859 24
 Iceland 25,679 25
 Greece 25,522 26
 Montenegro 24,791 27
 Finland 24,581 28
Pot D
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Wales 23,683 29
 Bulgaria 23,309 30
 Macedonia 23,283 31
 Georgia 22,402 32
 Hungary 22,349 33
 Republic of Ireland 22,004 34
 Scotland 21,784 35
 Moldova 20,696 36
 Albania 18,584 37
Pot E
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Lithuania 18,411 38
 Azerbaijan 18,331 39
 Armenia 18,126 40
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 18,056 41
 Belarus 17,741 42
 Kazakhstan 16,826 43
 Cyprus 16,636 44
 Latvia 16,516 45
 Estonia 14,498 46
Pot F
Team Coeff Rank[6]
 Malta 14,331 47
 Luxembourg 12,878 48
 Northern Ireland 12,611 49
 Faroe Islands 12,113 50
 San Marino 10,740 51
 Andorra 10,045 52
 Liechtenstein 8,058 53
 Gibraltar 0 54
 Kosovo 0 55
Notes

Groups

  The nine group winners qualify directly for the final tournament.
  The four best group runners-up (not counting results against sixth-placed team) advance to the play-offs.

Group 1

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 1
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Croatia 10 8 1 1 31 5 +26 25[a] Final tournament — 2–0 5–1 2–1 4–0 5–0
2  Greece 10 8 1 1 26 5 +21 25[a] Play-offs 1–1 — 3–0 2–0 5–1 4–0
3  Czech Republic 10 5 1 4 14 15 −1 16 2–1 1–2 — 1–1 1–0 3–1
4  Belarus 10 4 2 4 11 14 −3 14 0–4 0–2 1–0 — 3–1 1–0
5  Moldova 10 2 1 7 8 23 −15 7 0–3 0–2 1–3 2–2 — 1–0
6  San Marino 10 0 0 10 1 29 −28 0 0–4 0–5 0–2 0–2 0–2 —
Source: UEFA
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Head-to-head results: Greece 1–1 Croatia, Croatia 2–0 Greece.

Group 2

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 2
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Spain 10 9 0 1 31 10 +21 27 Final tournament — 1–2 5–1 1–0 3–0 3–1
2  Northern Ireland 10 6 2 2 15 11 +4 20 3–5 — 1–0 0–0 1–0 4–2
3  Slovakia 10 6 0 4 17 18 −1 18 1–4 1–0 — 0–2 4–1 2–0
4  Iceland 10 3 2 5 16 19 −3 11 2–7 0–1 2–3 — 2–3 5–2
5  Albania 10 1 4 5 9 17 −8 7 0–1 1–1 2–3 0–0 — 0–0
6  Estonia 10 0 2 8 11 24 −13 2 0–1 1–2 1–2 2–3 2–2 —
Source: UEFA

Group 3

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 3
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Denmark 10 7 2 1 30 8 +22 23 Final tournament — 1–1 5–2 2–0 6–0 3–0
2  Poland 10 6 4 0 22 9 +13 22 Play-offs 3–1 — 3–0 3–3 1–0 1–1
3  Georgia 10 3 3 4 11 19 −8 12 2–2 0–3 — 2–2 1–0 1–0
4  Finland 10 2 3 5 13 21 −8 9 0–5 1–3 1–2 — 0–2 1–1
5  Lithuania 10 2 2 6 7 16 −9 8 0–2 0–2 0–0 0–2 — 3–0
6  Faroe Islands 10 1 4 5 10 20 −10 7 0–3 2–2 3–1 1–3 2–2 —
Source: UEFA

Group 4

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 4
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  England 10 8 2 0 23 4 +19 26 Final tournament — 0–0 2–1 3–1 3–0 7–0
2  Netherlands 10 5 3 2 21 6 +15 18 1–1 — 3–0 1–2 3–0 8–0
3  Ukraine 10 5 2 3 18 12 +6 17 0–2 1–1 — 3–1 3–2 1–0
4  Scotland 10 4 2 4 13 13 0 14 0–2 2–0 0–2 — 1–1 3–0
5  Latvia 10 0 4 6 5 18 −13 4 1–2 0–3 1–1 0–2 — 0–0
6  Andorra 10 0 3 7 1 28 −27 3 0–1 0–1 0–6 1–1 0–0 —
Source: UEFA

Group 5

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 5
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Germany 10 8 1 1 33 7 +26 25 Final tournament — 2–1 2–0 3–0 1–0 6–1
2  Norway 10 4 3 3 15 13 +2 15 3–1 — 2–1 0–0 0–3[a] 1–1
3  Republic of Ireland 10 4 2 4 12 15 −3 14[b] 0–6 0–0 — 4–0 1–0 1–0
4  Israel 10 4 2 4 17 18 −1 14[b] 2–5 1–3 3–1 — 3–0 3–1
5  Kosovo 10 3 3 4 9 12 −3 12 0–0 3–2 1–1 0–4 — 2–0
6  Azerbaijan 10 0 3 7 6 27 −21 3 0–7 1–3 1–3 1–1 0–0 —
Source: UEFA
Notes:
  1. ^ The Norway v Kosovo match originally ended with a 5–0 win for Norway, but was later awarded as a 0–3 win for Kosovo, after UEFA concluded that Norway had played Kristoffer Ajer in this match, who was ineligible after being suspended due to cards in his U-19 tournament match.[7][8]
  2. ^ a b Head-to-head results: Republic of Ireland 4–0 Israel, Israel 3–1 Republic of Ireland.

Group 6

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 6
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Belgium 10 8 2 0 23 5 +18 26 Final tournament — 1–1 0–0 3–0 3–2 2–1
2  Sweden 10 6 2 2 19 8 +11 20 0–3 — 0–1 1–0 4–1 3–0
3  Turkey 10 5 2 3 14 10 +4 17 1–2 0–3 — 0–0 4–0 4–2
4  Hungary 10 3 2 5 12 14 −2 11 0–3 2–2 1–2 — 4–0 2–1
5  Cyprus 10 2 1 7 8 23 −15 7 0–2 0–1 2–1 0–2 — 2–1
6  Malta 10 1 1 8 8 24 −16 4 0–4 0–4 0–1 2–1 1–1 —
Source: UEFA

Group 7

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 7
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Serbia 10 8 2 0 23 5 +18 26 Final tournament — 0–0 3–2 0–0 2–1 4–0
2  Austria 10 7 1 2 25 7 +18 22 Play-offs 1–3 — 3–2 2–1 2–0 3–0
3  Russia 10 6 1 3 25 13 +12 19 1–2 1–0 — 0–0 5–1 3–0
4  Armenia 10 2 3 5 9 16 −7 9 0–1 0–5 1–2 — 0–3 1–0
5  Macedonia 10 2 1 7 17 24 −7 7 0–2 0–4 3–4 3–3 — 6–1
6  Gibraltar 10 1 0 9 2 36 −34 3 0–6 0–5 0–5 0–3 1–0 —
Source: UEFA

Group 8

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 8
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Romania 10 7 3 0 19 4 +15 24 Final tournament — 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 4–0
2  Portugal 10 7 1 2 33 11 +22 22 Play-offs 1–2 — 4–2 2–0 2–1 7–0
3  Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 6 0 4 24 11 +13 18 1–3 3–1 — 1–0 3–0 6–0
4  Wales 10 4 1 5 11 14 −3 13 0–0 0–2 0–4 — 3–1 2–1
5   Switzerland 10 3 1 6 11 18 −7 10 0–2 2–4 1–0 0–3 — 3–0
6  Liechtenstein 10 0 0 10 2 42 −40 0 0–2 0–9 0–4 1–3 0–2 —
Source: UEFA

Group 9

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group 9
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  France 10 9 1 0 24 6 +18 28 Final tournament — 1–1 2–1 4–1 3–0 2–0
2  Slovenia 10 4 4 2 14 12 +2 16 1–3 — 2–0 2–1 1–1 3–1
3  Montenegro 10 3 2 5 15 15 0 11 0–2 1–3 — 5–1 0–0 3–0
4  Kazakhstan 10 2 4 4 13 18 −5 10[a] 0–3 0–0 1–1 — 1–1 3–0
5  Bulgaria 10 2 4 4 10 11 −1 10[a] 0–1 3–0 3–1 2–2 — 0–1
6  Luxembourg 10 2 1 7 7 21 −14 7 2–3 1–1 1–3 0–3[b] 1–0 —
Source: UEFA
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Head-to-head results: Bulgaria 2–2 Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan 1–1 Bulgaria (Kazakhstan won on away goals).
  2. ^ The Luxembourg v Kazakhstan originally ended with a 1–2 win for Kazakhstan, but was later awarded as a 0–3 win for Kazakhstan, after UEFA concluded that Luxembourg had played an ineligible player.[9]

Ranking of second-placed teams

To determine the four best second-placed teams from the qualifying group stage which advance to the play-offs, only the results of the second-placed teams against the first, third, fourth and fifth-placed teams in their group are taken into account, while results against the sixth-placed team are not included. As a result, eight matches played by each second-placed team will count for the purposes of determining the ranking.

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 3  Poland 8 6 2 0 19 6 +13 20 Play-offs
2 1  Greece 8 6 1 1 17 5 +12 19
3 7  Austria 8 5 1 2 17 7 +10 16
4 8  Portugal 8 5 1 2 17 11 +6 16
5 6  Sweden 8 4 2 2 12 8 +4 14
6 2  Northern Ireland 8 4 2 2 9 8 +1 14
7 4  Netherlands 8 3 3 2 12 6 +6 12
8 9  Slovenia 8 3 3 2 10 10 0 12
9 5  Norway 8 3 2 3 11 11 0 11
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) goals scored; 4) away goals scored; 5) disciplinary points; 6) coefficient.

Play-offs

Main article: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification play-offs

Draw

The draw for the play-offs was held on 19 October 2018, 13:00 CEST, at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.[10] The four teams were drawn into two ties of home-and-away two-legged format.

Matches

The two play-off winners qualify for the final tournament.

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Greece  0–2  Austria 0–1 0–1
Poland  3–2  Portugal 0–1 3–1

Qualified teams

The following 12 teams qualify for the final tournament.

Team Qualified as Qualified on Previous appearances in Under-21 Euro1
only U-21 era (since 1978)
 Italy Hosts 9 December 2016[1] 19 (1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2017)
 Croatia Group 1 winners 15 October 2018 2 (2000, 2004)
 Spain Group 2 winners 6 September 2018 13 (1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017)
 Denmark Group 3 winners 16 October 2018 7 (1978, 1986, 1992, 2006, 2011, 2015, 2017)
 England Group 4 winners 11 October 2018 14 (1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017)
 Germany Group 5 winners 12 October 2018 11 (19822, 19902, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2017)
 Belgium Group 6 winners 16 October 2018 2 (2002, 2007)
 Serbia Group 7 winners 12 October 2018 10 (19783, 19803, 19843, 19903, 20044, 20064, 2007, 2009, 2015, 2017)
 Romania Group 8 winners 16 October 2018 1 (1998)
 France Group 9 winners 7 September 2018 8 (1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1994, 1996, 2002, 2006)
 Austria Play-off winners 20 November 2018 0 (debut)
 Poland Play-off winners 20 November 2018 6 (1982, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1994, 2017)
1 Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.

Top goalscorers

11 goals
8 goals
7 goals

Source: UEFA.com[11]

For full lists of goalscorers, see sections in each group:

References

  1. ^ a b "Italy to host 2019 Under-21 EURO". uefa.com. 9 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Seedings set for live 2019 U21 qualifying draw". UEFA.com. 25 January 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d "2017-19 UEFA European Under-21 Championship regulations" (PDF). UEFA.
  4. ^ "2019 Under-21 qualifying group stage draw". UEFA.com.
  5. ^ "England face Netherlands, Scotland in 2019 U21 qualifying". UEFA.com. 26 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h "Under-21 coefficients: 2019 qualifying draw" (PDF). UEFA.com.
  7. ^ "UEFA confirms: Kosovo wins three points on table against Norway". Football Federation of Kosovo. 29 July 2017.
  8. ^ "NFF har tatt grep etter Kristoffer Ajer-brøleren" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 2 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  9. ^ "МОЛОДЕЖНАЯ СБОРНАЯ КАЗАХСТАНА ВЫРВАЛА НИЧЬЮ У БОЛГАРИИ". Football Federation of Kazakhstan. 6 October 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  10. ^ "Play-off draw". UEFA.com.
  11. ^ "Statistics — Qualifying phase — Player statistics — Goals". UEFA.com. Retrieved 20 November 2018.

External links

2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
UEFA European U-21 and U-23 Championship
2017–18 in European men's football (UEFA)
2018–19 in European men's football (UEFA)
Football at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification
Categories