Today, October 1st, the Ukrainian youth team will play their opening match in the first round of qualification for the UEFA European Championship 2026 (U-17) — against Montenegro.

Also in our group are teams from Italy and Estonia. Matches at this stage will take place in Estonian cities Tallinn and Rakvere. To advance to Group A of the second round, we need to secure first or second place in the quartet.

“It's clear that in our group we can't ignore Italy. Moreover, this age group is rich with talent for Italians. It will be interesting to see how we fare against such a strong opponent. Italy — is the favorite of our quartet. Estonia — is a solid team that plays physical football. A slight advantage over this opponent lies in the fact that they are hosting the matches, which adds motivation — to show themselves before their fans. With Montenegro, the Ukrainian team met at a tournament in Romania. This is a strong team with tall players who play somewhat vertical football. Our minimum goal is to get out of the group. And our maximum goal is to come out of the group first place, because this gives us privileges during the draw in the future”, noted head coach of Ukraine's U-17 team Oleksandr Sitnik the day before.

The match against Montenegro will start at 3:30 PM Kyiv time in Tallinn. Live broadcast — on the YouTube channel of the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF).

Roster of Ukraine's U-17 team

Goalkeepers: Oleksandr Stepanov (“Shakhtar” Donetsk), Denis Stolyarenko (“Legia”, Poland), Dmitro Pozhar (“Dynamo” Kyiv).

Defenders: Nazarii Smotrichnyy, Roman Shupik (both — LNZ Chernihiv), Markian Panchishin (“Karpaty” Lviv), Denis Plymins'kyi (“Gajduk”, Croatia), Illia Yablonskyy (“Sporting”, Portugal), Oleh Pilip'yuk (“Shakhtar” Donetsk).

Half-backs: Stanislav Shukalovich (“Shakhtar” Donetsk), Denis Gordiyev, Oleksandr Hoch (both — “Ruh” Lviv), Andriy Hamzik (“Bayern”, Germany), Yaroslav Kozushko (“Slavia”, Czech Republic), Danylo Dyachok, Yaroslav Buravtsov (both — “Dynamo” Kyiv), Artem Rybak (“Barcelona”, Spain).

Forwards: Volodymyr Kvikvinia (“Dynamo” Kyiv), Adam Guram (“Gajduk”, Croatia), Oleh Dziurynets' (“Ruh” Lviv), Kirill Serdyuk (“Stuttgart”, Germany).

First Round of UEFA Euro 2026 (U-17) Qualification

Schedule for Group 1

October 1, 2025

Italy — Estonia (Rakvere, 8:30 AM)

Montenegro — Ukraine (Tallinn, 3:30 PM)

October 4, 2025

Italy — Montenegro (Tallinn, 8:30 AM)

Ukraine — Estonia (Rakvere, 3:30 PM)

October 7, 2025

Ukraine — Italy (Tallinn, 3:30 PM)

Estonia — Montenegro (Rakvere, 3:30 PM)

Group Composition

Group 1: Italy, Ukraine, Montenegro, Estonia.

Group 2: Czech Republic, Hungary, North Macedonia, Gibraltar.

Group 3: England, Sweden, Lithuania, Scotland.

Group 4: Spain, Denmark, Latvia, Andorra.

Group 5: Belgium, Norway, Belarus, Moldova.

Group 6: Austria, Ireland, Kosovo, Faroe Islands.

Group 7: Serbia, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Malta.

Group 8: Croatia, Netherlands, Albania, Kazakhstan.

Group 9: France, Israel, Romania, Azerbaijan.

Group 10: Switzerland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, San Marino.

Group 11: Northern Ireland, Finland, Cyprus, Armenia.

Group 12: Portugal, Slovenia, Wales, Liechtenstein.

Group 13: Poland, Germany, Luxembourg.

Group 14: Greece, Iceland, Georgia.

54 teams were divided into 12 groups of four participants each and two groups of three participants. The host of the final tournament, Estonia's team, will also participate in qualification.

Based on the results of the first round of qualifying, 14 group winners and 14 teams that secure second place will advance to the second round in Group A. The remaining 26 teams will take part in the second round in Group B.

Teams advancing to the second round of qualification in Group A will compete for seven spots at the final stage of UEFA Euro 2026 (U-17) in spring 2026. Estonia, as the host nation, has received an automatic berth. It's worth noting that this qualifying round is also a qualifier for the FIFA World Cup 2026 (U-17) in Qatar.

Moreover, teams from both leagues of the second round qualification will compete to rise and fall between leagues before the first round of qualification for UEFA Euro 2028 (U-19).