2022/23 Under-17 EURO elite round draw

The UEFA European Under-17 Championship elite round draw split 32 teams into eight groups of four played from 7 to 13 and 22 to 28 March. They will compete for 15 spots alongside hosts Hungary in the finals, to be held from 17 May to 2 June.

The draw was made by Diogo Monteiro, captain of the Portugal squad in the 2022 finals, who received the Respect Fair Play prize on behalf of his team.

The eight elite round group winners and seven runners-up with the best records will join Hungary in the final tournament.

Elite round groups

Group 1 (22-28 March): Serbia (hosts), Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belarus

Group 2 (22-28 March): Montenegro, Wales (hosts), Scotland, Iceland

Group 3 (22-28 March): Netherlands (hosts), England, Denmark, Northern Ireland

Group 4 (22-28 March): Spain, Germany, Türkiye (hosts), Finland

Group 5 (22-28 March): Portugal (hosts), Czechia, Poland, Slovakia

Group 6 (7-13 March): Italy, Ukraine, Cyprus (hosts), Republic of Ireland

Group 7 (22-28 March): Belgium, Norway (hosts), Croatia, Slovenia

Group 8 (22-28 March): France (holders), Switzerland, Latvia, Albania (hosts)

Meet the teams

• France beat Netherlands in the 2022 final to win their third U17 title. Portugal and Serbia were beaten semi-finalists; Denmark, Germany, Italy and Spain also made the last eight while other finals contenders hoping to qualify again are Belgium, Israel, Poland, Scotland and Türkiye (who lost 2-0 to Spain).

• Other former U17 champions (since 2001/02) involved are Netherlands (4 titles), Spain (3), England (2), Portugal (2), Germany (1), Switzerland (1) and Türkiye (1).

• England, Netherlands and Spain are aiming to extend their records of qualifying 14 times since the switch to U17 classification.

• Albania, Cyprus, Latvia, Montenegro and Wales are hoping for U17 finals debuts. Slovakia have only ever previously competed in the finals as hosts.

Draw procedure

• The 32 teams consist of 30 countries advancing from the autumn qualifying round, plus top seeds Netherlands and Spain, who enter at this stage.

• Seeding pots were formed in accordance with the coefficient rankings list (based on qualifying round positions, then record).

• In principle no group winners from the qualifying round could play runners-up from the same section. There was no such protection for the teams that progressed as the four best third-placed teams (Albania, Belarus, Northern Ireland, Slovakia).

• On the basis of previous decisions taken by the UEFA Executive Committee and the UEFA Emergency Panel, the following countries could not be drawn into the same group: Belarus and Ukraine.

• Now eight groups are formed, hosts will be appointed to hold the mini-tournaments.

Seeding pots

Pot A: Netherlands, Spain, Serbia, France (holders), Portugal, Italy, Belgium, Montenegro

Pot B: England, Czechia, Norway, Ukraine, Switzerland, Wales, Germany, Israel

Pot C: Türkiye, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, Poland, Cyprus, Scotland, Croatia, Latvia

Pot D Iceland, Finland, Republic of Ireland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Albania, Northern Ireland, Belarus