1974 UEFA European Under-23 Championship

The 1974 UEFA European Under-23 Championship, which spanned two years (1972–74) had 21 entrants. Hungary U-23 won the competition.

The 21 national teams were divided into eight groups (five groups of 3 + three group of 2). The group winners played off against each other on a two-legged home-and-away basis until the winner was decided. There was no finals tournament or 3rd-place playoff.

Draw
The allocation of teams into qualifying groups was based on that of 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification with several changes, reflecting the absence of some nations:
 * Group 1 did not include Hungary (moved to Group 7) and Malta, but included Czechoslovakia (moved from Group 8)
 * Group 2 did not include Switzerland and Luxembourg
 * Group 3 did not include Belgium and Iceland
 * Group 4 did not include Finland (moved to Group 8)
 * Group 5 did not include England and Wales, but included Denmark (moved from Group 8) and West Germany (who did not participate in World Cup qualification)
 * Group 6 did not include Northern Ireland and Cyprus
 * Group 7 did not include Spain, but included Hungary (moved from Group 1)
 * Group 8 (based on World Cup qualifying Group 9) did not include Republic of Ireland, but included Finland (moved from Group 4)