Stansted Airport is gearing up for thousands of football fans travelling to Germany for the UEFA European Championships.
MAG’s Uttlesford hub has 10 German destinations making all the tournament’s venues accessible.
On June 16, England will play Serbia in Gelsenkirchen, about an hour from Dortmund and Cologne, which are both served by direct Ryanair flights.
After that, the team will travel to Frankfurt to play Denmark and Cologne to face Slovenia. And if they make the next round, knockout games could take place in Stuttgart, Hamburg, and Munich.
Scotland fans can jet down from Edinburgh and Glasgow and pick up flights to the tournament.
Memmingen is an hour's train ride to Munich for the first game against the hosts on June 14. Flights to Cologne for the Swiss game on June 19, and Baden-Baden for Hungary on June 23 in Stuttgart are also available from the airport.
Here is how to get to each host city from Stansted Airport.
Berlin
Fly direct to Berlin or Leipzig with Ryanair.
The German capital’s Olympic Stadium will bring the curtain down on the tournament on July 14, when it hosts the final, and will also see three group games. Berlin’s famous Brandenburg Gate will be the centrepiece of its Fan Zone, framed by what organisers are billing as “the largest football goal in the world” and complete with big screens showing all the action. A fan park will also be in operation outside the Reichstag parliament building, another of Berlin’s most popular tourist spots – so fans can combine sightseeing with enjoying the tournament.
Frankfurt
Fly directly to Frankfurt Hahn, Cologne and Dortmund with Ryanair.
England fans will be descending on Frankfurt for the group game against Denmark on June 20, and the city will also bear witness to a clash between the host nation Germany and their near neighbours Switzerland on June 23. Event organisers in Frankfurt are promising a “rich programme of arts, culture, music and of course, football” at its Fan Zone on the banks of the River Main. Visitors to this city can also enjoy the views from the observation deck at the Main Tower, one of the EU’s tallest buildings.
Hamburg
Fly direct to Hamburg or Bremen with Ryanair.
England could find themselves playing a quarter-final here. The Fan Zone is in the city’s St Pauli district, home to the football club of the same name, and also at the heart of Hamburg’s famous nightlife scene. Its Beatles statue is a nod to the time the Fab Four spent here in their formative years, performing in Hamburg’s underground music venues.
Munich
Ryanair flies to Memmingen, just over an hour away by train.
Munich’s Allianz Arena will be the setting for the tournament’s opening game when the host nation faces Scotland on June 14. It will also see action at the business end of the competition, hosting a semi-final. The city is hosting a Fan Festival, with “interactive experiences for all ages, live music and performances from local artists and beyond”. Organisers are also pledging “plenty of football activities to be enjoyed and delicious culinary delights to sample”. Munich’s beer halls are world-famous, with many dating back to medieval times.
Cologne
Served directly by Ryanair.
Most famous for its 12th-century Cathedral, the tallest twin-spired church on the planet and a UNESCO World Heritage site, Cologne is hosting England’s final group game against Slovenia on June 25. The city’s Fan Zone is in the Heumarkt (Haymarket), a historic square in the Old Town that also hosts Cologne’s annual Christmas market.
Dusseldorf
Flights from Ryanair are available to Cologne and Dortmund, which are 45km and 68km away respectively.
If England wins the group, and then comes through a last-16 tie, this is where the Three Lions will play their quarter-final. Before then, Dusseldorf hosts some enticing group-stage clashes involving heavyweights like France and Spain. Faith. Love. Football. - a play that has been specially commissioned for EURO 2024 - will be staged at the city’s Fan Zone.
Stuttgart
Served directly by Ryanair.
Stuttgart will see Scotland and host nation Germany take on Hungary in the group stage on June 23, and the winner of that group will return here for their quarter-final if they come through a last-16 tie. Stuttgart is most well-known as the home of two luxury car brands, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, both of which have museums in the city.
Dortmund
Served directly by Ryanair.
Borussia Dortmund’s huge 81,000-capacity Westfalenstadion is one of European football’s most iconic grounds, and big hitters Italy, Portugal and France will all be here in the group stage. Dortmund will also host the penultimate game of the tournament when a semi-final is played in the city on July 10. With the Fan Zone Friedensplatz and the Public Viewing Westfalenpark, Dortmund offers not one but two prime Fan Festival locations.
Gelsenkirchen
Around an hour from Dortmund by train.
A small city neighbouring the much larger Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen has an outsized influence on German football as the home of one of its top clubs, Schalke 04. Schalke’s home ground has been selected to host Euro 2024 games – England are here for their opener against Serbia on June 16 and will return for their last-16 tie if they win Group C. On June 20, arguably the most hotly anticipated game of the group stage will take place here when Spain meets Italy. A former colliery site has been given a new lease of life for the tournament as Gelsenkirchen’s official Fan Park.
Leipzig
Served directly by Ryanair.
The biggest city in the former East Germany, Leipzig, was a footballing backwater until 2009 when soft drinks giant Red Bull took over a local team in the fifth tier and funded promotion to the top flight. It is the only host city that England will not play in, irrespective of where they finish in the group or how far in the tournament they go – but will nevertheless host some intriguing group stage clashes involving the likes of Portugal and France, before staging a last-16 fixture.