2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship
The 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship (also known as UEFA Under-19 Euro 2018) was the 17th edition of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship (67th edition if the Under-18 and Junior eras are included), the annual international youth football championship organised by UEFA for the men's under-19 national teams of Europe. Finland hosted the final tournament, between 16 and 29 July, after being selected by UEFA on 26 January 2015. A total of eight teams competed in the tournament, with players born on or after 1 January 1999 eligible to participate.
| Jalkapallon alle 19-vuotiaiden Euroopan-mestaruuskilpailut 2018 (in Finnish) U19-Europamästerskapet i fotboll 2018 (in Swedish) | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Finland |
| Dates | 16–29 July |
| Teams | 8 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 2 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Portugal (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Italy |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 16 |
| Goals scored | 58 (3.63 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Jota Francisco Trincão (5 goals each) |
Same as previous editions held in even-numbered years, the tournament acted as the UEFA qualifiers for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The top five teams of the tournament qualified for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland as the UEFA representatives, besides Poland who qualified automatically as hosts.
In the final, 2017 runners-up Portugal beat the 2016 losing finalists Italy 4–3, after extra-time, to win their first title in the under-19 era and their fourth overall. Having won the Under-17 title in 2016, this generation of players became the first to hold the European title in both youth categories. England were the defending champions, but were eliminated by France, finishing third in the group stage. They lost 0–3 to Norway in the play-off round and thus failed to qualify for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup, where they would also defend their title.