More than a month and a half after EURO 2024 ends, national teams in Europe will enter their next journey, with the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League kicking off during the FIFA Days in September.
The opening match is at 11:00 p.m. on September 4 (Vietnam time), between Azerbaijan and Sweden in League C, but of course, all attention is on League A.
What is the UEFA Nations League?
The Nations League is a tournament held every two years with the participation of 54 teams that are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).
The first Nations League took place in 2018–19 and the tournament was organised in a league structure, with promotion and relegation.
UEFA said the tournament was designed "to minimise pointless friendlies and enable teams to have competitive encounters with similarly ranked teams".
Which teams will participate in the 2024-2025 Nations League?
The 54 participating teams are divided into 4 Leagues based on their results in the 2022-2023 Nations League.
The teams are then divided into groups, again based on their 2022–23 UEFA Nations League rankings:
League A
Group A1: Croatia, Portugal, Poland, Scotland
Group A2: Italy, Belgium, France, Israel
Group A3: Netherlands, Hungary, Germany , Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group A4: Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Serbia
League B
Group B1: Czech Republic, Ukraine, Albania, Georgia
Group B2: England, Finland, Republic of Ireland, Greece
Group B3: Austria, Norway, Slovenia, Kazakhstan
Group B4: Wales, Iceland, Montenegro, Türkiye
League C
Group C1: Sweden, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Estonia
Group C2: Romania, Kosovo, Cyprus, Lithuania
Group C3: Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Northern Ireland, Belarus
Group C4: Armenia, Faroe Islands, North Macedonia, Latvia
League D
Group D1: Gibraltar, San Marino, Liechtenstein
Group D2: Moldova, Malta, Andorra
Match schedule
Round 1: September 5-7, 2024
Round 2: September 8-10, 2024
Round 3: October 10-12, 2024
Round 4: October 13-15, 2024
Round 5: November 14-16, 2024
Round 6: November 17-19, 2024
Knockout round draw: November 2024
Knockout round: March 20-25, 2025
League A Quarterfinals: 20-25.3.2025
Final round: June 4-8, 2025
Competition format
Each team in League A, B and C will play matches within their group, while teams in League D will play four matches. Teams play on a home and away basis.
The top and second-placed teams in each group in League A will advance to the quarter-finals (over two legs). The winners will advance to the finals.
The fourth-placed teams in League A and B will be automatically relegated to League B and C. The two lowest-ranked fourth-placed teams in League C will be relegated to League D.
The top four teams in League B and C, and the top two in League D, will automatically be promoted to Leagues A, B and C.
Nations League 2024-2025 Championship Candidates
Spain, the 2022-2023 Nations League champions and recent EURO 2024 champions, are one of the strongest candidates.
Former champions France , Portugal and Germany are other top candidates.
Teams that have won the UEFA Nations League
2018-2019: Portugal (won Netherlands 1-0 in the final).
2020-2021: France (won Spain 2-1 in the final)
2022-2023: Spain (won Croatia 5-4 on penalties in the final).
Bonus
The exact prize money for the 2024-2025 Nations League has yet to be revealed.
In the 2022-2023 Nations League, Spain will earn 10.5 million Euros, while runners-up Croatia will receive 9 million Euros.
How does World Cup qualifying relate to the UEFA Nations League?
The 2024-2025 Nations League will be partly linked to the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in Europe.
The 12 group winners will qualify directly for the World Cup, while the runners-up from each group will enter the play-offs.
The four highest-ranked Nations League group winners who do not qualify by any of the above two methods will also enter the play-offs.
