Road to Hungary starts here for Under-19s

Just over a month after Serbia claimed their first UEFA European Under-19 Championship, qualifying for the 2013/14 competition begins in earnest.

The holders are in Group 7 and do not kick off their campaign until November, although the first section, Group 12, involves Turkey, Montenegro, the Faroe Islands and hosts the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and gets under way on Friday.

The majority of the qualifying round action takes place in October, in which eight of the 13 sections will be played, including Group 1 featuring Croatia, Czech Republic, Cyprus and Gibraltar, making their first U19 appearance having become UEFA's 54th member association in May.

The top two in every group, along with the third-placed side with the best record against the leading pair, will follow top seeds Spain into the elite round in spring 2014. From that seven teams will emerge to join Hungary in the finals that summer, which will also act as the qualifying competition for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand.

Qualifying round draw
Group 1 (17-22 October): Croatia, Czech Republic*, Gibraltar, Cyprus

Group 2 (10-15 October): Romania, Poland*, Armenia, Lithuania

Group 3 (10-15 October): Republic of Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Azerbaijan, Sweden*

Group 4 (10-15 October): Belgium*, France, Northern Ireland, Iceland

Group 5 (10-15 October): Germany, Scotland, Belarus*, Latvia

Group 6 (12-17 November): Greece, Slovakia, Albania, Bulgaria*

Group 7 (13-18 November): Serbia*, Austria, Kazakhstan, Finland

Group 8 (14-19 November): Portugal*, Norway, Luxembourg, San Marino

Group 9 (10-15 October): Switzerland, England, Andorra, Slovenia*

Group 10 (8-13 October): Italy, Denmark, Israel*, Liechtenstein

Group 11 (13-18 November): Netherlands, Georgia*, Moldova, Wales

Group 12 (6-11 September): Turkey, Montenegro, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, Faroe Islands

Group 13 (10-15 October): Russia*, Ukraine, Malta, Estonia

*Hosts