2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification

The 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying competition was a men's under-19 football competition that determined the seven teams joining the automatically qualified hosts Finland in the 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament.^[1]

Apart from Finland, all remaining 54 UEFA member national teams entered the qualifying competition (including Kosovo who entered for the first time).^[2] Players born on or after 1 January 1999 were eligible to participate.

Format

The qualifying competition consisted of two rounds:^[3]

• Qualifying round: Apart from Spain and Portugal, which received byes to the elite round as the teams with the highest seeding coefficient, the remaining 52 teams were drawn into 13 groups of four teams. Each group was played in single round-robin format at one of the teams selected as hosts after the draw. The 13 group winners and the 13 runners-up advanced to the elite round.
• Elite round: The 28 teams were drawn into seven groups of four teams. Each group was played in single round-robin format at one of the teams selected as hosts after the draw. The seven group winners qualified for the final tournament.

The schedule of each mini-tournament was as follows (Regulations Article 19.04):^[3]

Matchday	Matches
Matchday 1	1 v 4, 3 v 2
Rest days (2 days)	—
Matchday 2	1 v 3, 2 v 4
Rest days (2 days)	—
Matchday 3	2 v 1, 4 v 3

Tiebreakers

In the qualifying round and elite round, teams were 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 were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Articles 14.01 and 14.02):^[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. If more than two teams were tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams were still tied, all head-to-head criteria above were reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
5. Goal difference in all group matches;
6. Goals scored in all group matches;
7. Penalty shoot-out if only two teams had the same number of points, and they met in the last round of the group and are tied after applying all criteria above (not used if more than two teams had the same number of points, or if their rankings were not relevant for qualification for the next stage);
8. Disciplinary points (red card = 3 points, yellow card = 1 point, expulsion for two yellow cards in one match = 3 points);
9. UEFA coefficient for the qualifying round draw;
10. Drawing of lots.

Qualifying round

Draw

The draw for the qualifying round was held on 13 December 2016, 10:00 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]

• 2014 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)
• 2015 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)
• 2016 UEFA European Under-19 Championship final tournament and qualifying competition (qualifying round and elite round)

Each group contained one team from Pot A, one team from Pot B, one team from Pot C, and one team from Pot D. For political reasons, Azerbaijan and Armenia, Serbia and Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo could not be drawn in the same group.^[2]

Final tournament hosts Team Coeff Rank  Finland 2.333 —

Bye to elite round Team Coeff Rank  Spain 11.333 1  Portugal 11.167 2

Teams entering qualifying round

Pot A Team Coeff Rank  Austria 10.500 3  Germany 9.500 4  England 9.167 5  France 9.000 6  Ukraine 8.833 7  Russia 8.833 8  Serbia 8.500 9  Netherlands 8.333 10  Italy 7.333 11  Belgium 7.167 12  Czech Republic 7.000 13  Croatia 7.000 14  Turkey 6.667 15

Pot B Team Coeff Rank  Israel 6.667 16  Montenegro 6.500 17  Georgia 6.333 18  Denmark 6.000 19  Sweden 5.833 20  Slovakia 5.833 21   Switzerland 5.667 22  Scotland 5.333 23  Greece 5.167 24  Republic of Ireland 5.000 25  Poland 4.667 26  Slovenia 4.333 27  Bulgaria 4.167 28

Pot C Team Coeff Rank  Norway 4.167 29  Wales 3.833 30  Lithuania 3.667 31  Bosnia and Herzegovina 3.667 32  Romania 3.333 33  Hungary 3.333 34  Macedonia 3.333 35  Luxembourg 2.667 36  Estonia 2.667 37  Latvia 2.667 38  Iceland 2.500 39  Northern Ireland 2.500 40  Azerbaijan 2.500 41

Pot D Team Coeff Rank  Cyprus 2.500 42  Armenia 2.333 43  Belarus 1.667 44  Albania 1.667 45  Malta 1.333 46  Moldova 1.000 47  Andorra 0.333 48  Liechtenstein 0.333 49  Faroe Islands 0.333 50  Gibraltar 0.333 51  Kazakhstan 0.333 52  San Marino 0.000 53  Kosovo — 54

Notes

• Teams marked in bold qualified for the final tournament.

Groups

The qualifying round had to be played by 19 November 2017, and on the following FIFA International Match Calendar dates unless all four teams agreed to play on another date:^[3][6]

• 28 August – 5 September 2017
• 2–10 October 2017
• 6–14 November 2017

Times up to 28 October 2017 are CEST (UTC+2), thereafter times are CET (UTC+1).

Group 1

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Denmark	3	3	0	0	11	3	+8	9	Elite round
2	Latvia	3	1	1	1	5	2	+3	4
3	Croatia (H)	3	1	1	1	5	5	0	4
4	San Marino	3	0	0	3	0	11	−11	0

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Group 2

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany	3	3	0	0	14	2	+12	9	Elite round
2	Poland (H)	3	2	0	1	5	3	+2	6
3	Northern Ireland	3	0	1	2	2	9	−7	1
4	Belarus	3	0	1	2	1	8	−7	1

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Group 3

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Czech Republic	3	3	0	0	11	0	+11	9	Elite round
2	Scotland	3	1	1	1	6	5	+1	4
3	Armenia	3	0	2	1	5	10	−5	2
4	Luxembourg (H)	3	0	1	2	3	10	−7	1

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Group 4

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Netherlands (H)	3	2	1	0	7	2	+5	7	Elite round
2	Hungary	3	2	0	1	7	4	+3	6
3	Slovenia	3	1	1	1	8	4	+4	4
4	Malta	3	0	0	3	1	13	−12	0

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Group 5

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Macedonia (H)	3	3	0	0	10	2	+8	9	Elite round
2	Belgium	3	2	0	1	9	5	+4	6
3	Switzerland	3	1	0	2	9	8	+1	3
4	Liechtenstein	3	0	0	3	1	14	−13	0

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Group 6

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Austria (H)	3	3	0	0	5	0	+5	9	Elite round
2	Kosovo	3	2	0	1	5	2	+3	6
3	Israel	3	1	0	2	2	4	−2	3
4	Lithuania	3	0	0	3	0	6	−6	0

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Group 7

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Republic of Ireland (H)	3	2	1	0	7	1	+6	7	Elite round
2	Serbia	3	2	0	1	6	3	+3	6
3	Cyprus	3	1	0	2	2	7	−5	3
4	Azerbaijan	3	0	1	2	2	6	−4	1

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Group 8

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	England	3	3	0	0	9	1	+8	9	Elite round
2	Bulgaria (H)	3	2	0	1	4	2	+2	6
3	Iceland	3	1	0	2	4	5	−1	3
4	Faroe Islands	3	0	0	3	1	10	−9	0

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Group 9

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Italy	3	3	0	0	9	3	+6	9	Elite round
2	Sweden (H)	3	2	0	1	9	3	+6	6
3	Moldova	3	1	0	2	3	7	−4	3
4	Estonia	3	0	0	3	1	9	−8	0

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Group 10

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Romania	3	3	0	0	12	2	+10	9	Elite round
2	Greece (H)	3	2	0	1	8	3	+5	6
3	Russia	3	1	0	2	8	4	+4	3
4	Gibraltar	3	0	0	3	0	19	−19	0

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Group 11

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	France	3	2	1	0	10	2	+8	7	Elite round
2	Bosnia and Herzegovina (H)	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6
3	Georgia	3	0	2	1	2	3	−1	2
4	Andorra	3	0	1	2	2	10	−8	1

The France v Andorra match was completed with a 7–0 scoreline before a default victory was awarded.

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Group 12

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ukraine	3	3	0	0	7	1	+6	9	Elite round
2	Norway	3	2	0	1	11	3	+8	6
3	Montenegro	3	1	0	2	1	7	−6	3
4	Albania (H)	3	0	0	3	1	9	−8	0

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Group 13

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Slovakia	3	2	1	0	5	3	+2	7	Elite round
2	Turkey (H)	3	2	0	1	7	4	+3	6
3	Kazakhstan	3	1	1	1	3	5	−2	4
4	Wales	3	0	0	3	4	7	−3	0

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Elite round

Draw

The draw for the elite round was held on 6 December 2017, 11:00 CET (UTC+1), at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.^[7][8]

The teams were seeded according to their results in the qualifying round.^[9] Spain and Portugal, which received byes to the elite round, were automatically seeded into Pot A. Each group contained one team from Pot A, one team from Pot B, one team from Pot C, and one team from Pot D. Teams from the same qualifying round group could not be drawn in the same group.^[10]

Pos	Grp	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Seeding
1	—	Spain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Pot A
2	—	Portugal	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	2	Germany	3	3	0	0	14	2	+12	9
4	3	Czech Republic	3	3	0	0	11	0	+11	9
5	10	Romania	3	3	0	0	12	2	+10	9
6	1	Denmark	3	3	0	0	11	3	+8	9
7	5	Macedonia	3	3	0	0	10	2	+8	9
8	8	England	3	3	0	0	9	1	+8	9	Pot B
9	9	Italy	3	3	0	0	9	3	+6	9
10	12	Ukraine	3	3	0	0	7	1	+6	9
11	6	Austria	3	3	0	0	5	0	+5	9
12	11	France	3	2	1	0	10	2	+8	7
13	7	Republic of Ireland	3	2	1	0	7	1	+6	7
14	4	Netherlands	3	2	1	0	7	2	+5	7
15	13	Slovakia	3	2	1	0	5	3	+2	7	Pot C
16	12	Norway	3	2	0	1	11	3	+8	6
17	9	Sweden	3	2	0	1	9	3	+6	6
18	10	Greece	3	2	0	1	8	3	+5	6
19	5	Belgium	3	2	0	1	9	5	+4	6
20	4	Hungary	3	2	0	1	7	4	+3	6[a]
21	13	Turkey	3	2	0	1	7	4	+3	6[a]
22	7	Serbia	3	2	0	1	6	3	+3	6	Pot D
23	6	Kosovo	3	2	0	1	5	2	+3	6
24	2	Poland	3	2	0	1	5	3	+2	6
25	8	Bulgaria	3	2	0	1	4	2	+2	6
26	11	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6
27	1	Latvia	3	1	1	1	5	2	+3	4
28	3	Scotland	3	1	1	1	6	5	+1	4

Groups

The elite round had to be played on the following FIFA International Match Calendar dates unless all four teams agreed to play on another date:^[3][8]

• 19–27 March 2018

Times up to 24 March 2018 are CET (UTC+1), thereafter times are CEST (UTC+2).

Group 1

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Norway	3	2	0	1	11	12	−1	6[a]	Final tournament
2	Germany (H)	3	2	0	1	9	6	+3	6[a]
3	Scotland	3	1	0	2	6	8	−2	3[b]
4	Netherlands	3	1	0	2	7	7	0	3[b]

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Group 2

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	England	3	2	0	1	7	3	+4	6[a]	Final tournament
2	Latvia	3	2	0	1	5	6	−1	6[a]
3	Hungary	3	1	0	2	7	10	−3	3[b]
4	Macedonia (H)	3	1	0	2	6	6	0	3[b]

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Group 3

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Italy (H)	3	2	1	0	7	4	+3	7	Final tournament
2	Poland	3	1	1	1	6	5	+1	4
3	Greece	3	1	0	2	4	7	−3	3
4	Czech Republic	3	0	2	1	3	4	−1	2

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Group 4

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ukraine	3	2	1	0	4	2	+2	7	Final tournament
2	Romania (H)	3	2	0	1	7	3	+4	6
3	Serbia	3	1	0	2	4	8	−4	3
4	Sweden	3	0	1	2	3	5	−2	1

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Group 5

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Portugal (H)	3	3	0	0	10	0	+10	9	Final tournament
2	Republic of Ireland	3	1	1	1	4	5	−1	4
3	Kosovo	3	1	0	2	2	9	−7	3
4	Slovakia	3	0	1	2	2	4	−2	1

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Group 6

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	France	3	3	0	0	9	4	+5	9	Final tournament
2	Spain (H)	3	1	1	1	5	4	+1	4
3	Belgium	3	1	0	2	4	6	−2	3
4	Bulgaria	3	0	1	2	0	4	−4	1

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Group 7

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Turkey	3	2	1	0	5	2	+3	7	Final tournament
2	Denmark (H)	3	1	2	0	6	5	+1	5
3	Austria	3	1	1	1	5	4	+1	4
4	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3	0	0	3	3	8	−5	0

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Qualified teams

The following eight teams qualified for the final tournament.

Team	Qualified as	Qualified on	Previous appearances in Under-19 Euro1 only U-19 era (since 2002)
Finland	Hosts	26 January 2015[1]	0 (debut)
Norway	Elite round Group 1 winners	27 March 2018	3 (2002, 2003, 2005)
England	Elite round Group 2 winners	24 March 2018	9 (2002, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2017)
Italy	Elite round Group 3 winners	24 March 2018	5 (2003, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2016)
Ukraine	Elite round Group 4 winners	27 March 2018	4 (2004, 2009, 2014, 2015)
Portugal	Elite round Group 5 winners	27 March 2018	9 (2003, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017)
France	Elite round Group 6 winners	27 March 2018	9 (2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016)
Turkey	Elite round Group 7 winners	27 March 2018	5 (2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2013)

¹ Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.

Goalscorers

9 goals

8 goals

6 goals

5 goals

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

Source: UEFA.com^[11]

References

External links

• Official website