The 1986 UEFA European Under-21 Championship was the 5th staging of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

The qualifying stage spanned two years (1984–86), had 29 entrants.

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.

The allocation of teams into qualifying groups was based on that of 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification with several changes, reflecting the absence of some nations: See 1986 UEFA European Under-21 Championship squads