England’s hope of winning the Euro 2016 football championships were thrown into turmoil last night after it emerged that French and German Uefa officials were poised to file a legal petition suspending England from the competition if Britain votes to leave Europe on June 23.

The motion, which would also impact Wales and Northern Ireland if they clear the group stages, would cast the three home nations into a legal limbo just days before the start of the Round of 16 on June 25.

“Solidarity is a core principle in Europe, and this is true in the great game of football no less than trade or politics,” said Jurgen Loos, the former German central midfielder who is spearheading the Franco-German proposal, “If Britain leaves, then we should be clear: ‘out’ means ‘out’.”

Draft legal documents seen by The Telegraph – which are due to be submitted no later than April 1 - also set out contingencies for dealing with angry English fans whose Euro 2016 tickets and EU passports will be automatically invalidated when UK-EU borders slam shut at 00.01 on June 24 in the event of Brexit.

Yuro Baloni, spokesman at Uefa headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, declined to comment until the petition had been formally filed, but sources said that the plan had gathered sudden momentum after England’s stunning 3-2 win over Germany in Berlin last weekend.