This is a list of meetings of the European Council (informally referred to as EU summits); the meetings of the European Council, an institution of the European Union (EU) comprising heads of state or government of EU member states. They started in 1975 as tri-annual meetings. The number of meetings grew to minimum four per year between 1996 and 2007, and minimum six per year since 2008. From 2008 to 2019, an average of seven council meetings per year took place. A record number of meetings (13) were held during 2020 - although mostly as informal video conferences; as the meeting frequency and format was changed this specific year by the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2021, an average of eight council meetings per year took place (see list below).

Since 2008, an annual average of two special Euro summits were also organized in addition – and often in parallel – to the EU summits. As the agenda of Euro summits is restricted solely to discuss issues for the eurozone and only invite political leaders of the eurozone member states, such meetings are not counted as European Councils. Neither are any of the Tripartite Social Summits, that were held bi-annually since May 2021 between the EU Council presidency, Council President, Commission President and the European social partners at top management level (BusinessEurope, European Trade Union Confederation, SGI Europe, SMEunited and CEC European Managers).

The current practice is that meetings are always called and organized to the extent found needed by the European Council president. The upcoming ordinary meetings are scheduled by the end of each semester, by the issuance of a call letter. In 2011-2020 meetings were scheduled and called for the third following semester (minimum one year in advance),Scheduling of ordinary meetings in 2011-2020:I/2011 (archived) II/2011 (archived) I/2012 (archived, revised) II/2012 (archived) I/2013 (1st rev, 2nd rev, archived) II/2013 (archived) I/2014 (1st rev, 2nd rev, 3rd rev, archived) II/2014 (archived) I/2015 (archived) II/2015 I/2016 (revised, archived) II/2016 (archived) I/2017 II/2017 I/2018 II/2018 I/2019 II/2019 I/2020 II/2020 but this changed to minimum 6 months in advance for 2021-2023,Scheduling of ordinary meetings in 2021-2023: I/2021 II/2021 I/2022 II/2022 I/2023 II/2023 while meetings in 2024 were only called shortly before the first meeting of the specific semester in concern;Scheduling of ordinary meetings in 2024: I/2024 II/2024 although they have again been called minimum one year in advance since 2025.Scheduling of ordinary meetings since 2025: I/2025 II/2025 I/2026All call letters for ordinary meetings

The ordinary meetings can take form either as "scheduled ordinary meetings" (always resulting in a published document entitled "conclusions") or "informal ordinary meetings" (never resulting in a published document entitled "conclusions" - but instead often with a published document entitled "statement" or "declaration"). A called scheduled/informal ordinary upcoming meeting might occasionally be moved or cancelled within a short notice, with such change then being notified by the Council president through the issue of a revised calendar plan for the ordinary meetings within the semester in concern. If extra meetings are called outside the procedure of notification by an issued call letter for the upcoming semester in concern, meaning when they are called at short notice to be held within an ongoing semester, then they are referred to as "extraordinary meetings". The phrase "special meeting" is synonymously used for an "extraordinary meeting".

Extraordinary meetings can - just like the ordinary meetings - be held either in a formal or informal format. The list does not specify whether or not an extraordinary meeting was formal or informal, but this can be indirectly observed when checking the title of the published document summarizing the outcome of the meeting, as "conclusions" can only be published if the extraordinary meeting had a formal format.

List The first seven summit meetings were held between 1961 and 1974, but this was before the formal establishment of the European Council. Some sources however consider them to be the informal seven first meetings of the European Council.

1970s # Year Date Type EU Council presidency President-in-Office Commission President Host city Notes 1 1975 10–11 March ― Liam Cosgrave François-Xavier Ortoli Dublin Inaugural formal Council 2 16–17 July ― Aldo Moro Brussels web archive 3 1–2 December ― Rome Established TREVI 4 1976 1–2 April ― Gaston Thorn Luxembourgweb archive 5 12–13 July ― Joop den Uyl Brussels web archive 6 29–30 November ― The Hagueweb archive 7 1977 25–27 March ― James Callaghan Roy Jenkins Rome web archive 8 29–30 June ― London web archive 9 5–6 December ― Leo Tindemans Brussels web archive 10 1978 7–8 April ― Anker Jørgensen Copenhagen web archive 11 6–7 July ― Helmut Schmidt Bremen web archive 12 4–5 December ― Brussels web archive 13 1979 12–13 March ― Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Paris web archive 14 21–22 June ― Strasbourg web archive 15 29–30 November ― Jack Lynch Dublin web archive

1980s # Year Date Type EU Council presidency President-in-Office Commission President Host city Notes 16 1980 17–18 April ― Francesco Cossiga Roy Jenkins Luxembourg web archive 17 12–13 June ― Venice web archive 18 1–2 December ― Pierre Werner Luxembourg web archive 19 1981 23–24 March ― Dries van Agt Gaston Thorn Maastricht web archive 20 29–30 June ― Luxembourg web archive 21 26–27 November ― Margaret Thatcher London web archive 22 1982 29–30 March ― Wilfried Martens Brussels web archive 23 28–29 June ― Brusselsweb archive 24 3–4 December ― Poul Schlüter Copenhagen web archive 25 1983 21–22 March ― Helmut Kohl Brussels web archive 26 17–19 June ― Stuttgart web archive 27 4–6 December ― Andreas Papandreou Athens web archive 28 1984 19–20 March ― François Mitterrand Brusselsweb archiveweb archive 29 25–26 June ― Fontainebleau British rebate agreed 30 3–4 December ― Garret FitzGerald Dublin web archive 31 1985 29–30 March ― Bettino Craxi Jacques Delors Brussels Initiated the IGC leading to the Single European Act 32 28–29 June ― Milan web archive 33 2–3 December ― Jacques Santer Luxembourg web archive 34 1986 26–27 June ― Ruud Lubbers The Hague web archive 35 5–6 December ― Margaret Thatcher London web archive 36 1987 29–30 June ― Wilfried Martens Brussels web archive 37 4–5 December ― Poul Schlüter Copenhagenweb archive 38 1988 11–13 February ― Helmut Kohl Brussels web archive 39 27–28 June ― Hanover web archive 40 2–3 December ― Andreas Papandreou Rhodes web archive 41 1989 26–27 June ― Felipe González Madrid web archive 42 18 November Informal François Mitterrand Paris web archive 43 8–9 December ― Strasbourg webEuropean Council endorses German reunification despite some Anglo-French opposition.

1990s

# Year Date Type EU Council presidency President-in-Office Commission President Host city Notes 44 1990 28 April Extraordinary Charles Haughey Jacques Delors Dublin web archive 45 25–26 June ― Dublin web archive 46 27–28 October ― Giulio Andreotti Rome web archive 47 14–15 December ― Rome web archive 48 1991 8 April Informal Jacques Santer Luxembourg web archive 49 28–29 June ― Luxembourg web archive 50 9–10 December ― Ruud Lubbers Maastricht Signing of the Treaty of Maastricht 51 1992 27 June ― Aníbal Cavaco Silva Lisbon web archive 52 16 October ― John Major Birmingham web archive 53 11–12 December ― Edinburgh web archive 54 1993 21–22 June ― Poul Nyrup Rasmussen Copenhagen web archive Copenhagen criteria agreed 55 29 October ― Jean-Luc Dehaene Brussels web archive 56 10–11 December ― Brussels web archive 57 1994 24–25 June ― Andreas Papandreou Corfu Signing of the Accession Treaty of Austria, Finland, Sweden and Norway (Norway did not ratify) 58 15 July Extraordinary Helmut Kohl Brussels web archive 59 9–10 December ― Essen web archive 60 1995 26–27 June ― Jacques Chirac Jacques Santer Cannes web archive 61 22–23 October Extraordinary Felipe González Mallorca 62 15–16 December ― Madrid web archive 63 1996 29 March ― Lamberto Dini Turin web archive 64 21–22 June ― Romano Prodi Florence web archive 65 5 October Extraordinary John Bruton Dublin 66 13–14 December ― Dublin web archive 67 1997 23 May Informal Wim Kok Noordwijk 68 16–17 June ― Amsterdam Signed Treaty of Amsterdam 69 20–21 November Extraordinary Jean-Claude Juncker Luxembourg Extraordinary European Council on Employment 70 12–13 December ― Luxembourg 71 1998 3 May Extraordinary Tony Blair Brussels Special Council on the Euro decides the 11 states which would enter the third stage of EMU 72 15–16 June ― Cardiff web archive 73 24–25 October Informal Viktor Klima Pörtschach 74 11–12 December ― Vienna web archive 75 1999 26 February Informal Gerhard Schröder Königswinter 76 24–25 March ― Manuel Marin (Interim) Berlin web archive 77 14 April Informal Brussels 78 3–4 June ― Cologne web archive Details below table 79 15–16 October Extraordinary Paavo Lipponen Romano Prodi Tampere Special meeting on justice and home affairs 80 10–11 December ― Helsinki web archive

2000s