UEFA Nations League 2024-2025: Groups, teams, format, schedule, prize cash | Soccer Information

When does the 2024-2025 Nations League begin and what’s the format? What number of international locations are taking part in? Al Jazeera solutions.

The primary spherical of the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League will start on September 5, as Spain begin their title defence with an away match towards Serbia in Belgrade.

Right here’s every part to know concerning the fourth version of the event:

⚽ What’s the UEFA Nations League?

The Nations League is a biennial worldwide males’s soccer competitors performed by 54 groups which might be member associations of the Union of European Soccer Associations (UEFA).

The primary version of the Nations League befell in 2018-19 and the competitors is performed in a league construction, that includes promotion and relegation.

UEFA, the governing physique for European soccer, says the event was devised “to minimise meaningless friendlies and provides nations aggressive encounters with equally ranked groups”.

⚽ Which groups are taking part in within the 2024-2025 Nations League?

The 54 collaborating groups have been divided into 4 leagues primarily based on their ends in the 2022-2023 Nations League, the final version of the competitors.

Groups have been then divided into teams, once more primarily based on their 2022-2023 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 Eire, Greece
  • Group B3: Austria, Norway, Slovenia, Kazakhstan
  • Group B4: Wales, Iceland, Montenegro, Turkey

League C 

  • Group C1: Sweden, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Estonia
  • Group C2: Romania, Kosovo, Cyprus, Lithuania
  • Group C3: Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Northern Eire, Belarus
  • Group C4: Armenia, Faroe Islands, North Macedonia, Latvia

League D

  • Group D1: Gibraltar, San Marino, Liechtenstein
  • Group D2: Moldova, Malta, Andorra
Spain players celebrate with the trophy after winning the Nations League final soccer match between Croatia and Spain at De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Spain lifted the 2022-23 Nations League title after beating Croatia within the closing in Rotterdam, the Netherlands on June 18, 2023. La Roja will head into this yr’s competitors as sturdy favourites, having just lately gained Euro 2024 [Martin Meissner/AP]

⚽ When will the event be staged?

The league part will characteristic six rounds.

  • Match day 1: September 5-7, 2024
  • Match day 2: September 8-10, 2024
  • Match day 3: October 10-12, 2024
  • Match day 4: October 13-15, 2024
  • Match day 5: November 14-16, 2024
  • Match day 6: November 17-19, 2024
  • Knockout spherical playoff draw: November 2024
  • Knockout spherical playoffs: March 20-25, 2025
  • League A quarterfinals: March 20-25, 2025
  • Last event: June 4-8, 2025

⚽ What’s the format?

  • Every staff in Leagues A, B and C will play six matches of their group, whereas groups in League D will play 4. All fixtures will probably be on a home-and-away foundation.
  • The League A bunch winners and runners-up will play in two-legged quarterfinals, with the winners of those ties qualifying for the ultimate 4.
  • The fourth-placed groups in Leagues A and B are robotically relegated to Leagues B and C respectively. The 2 lowest-ranked fourth-placed groups in League C are relegated to League D, the underside tier.
  • The 4 group winners in Leagues B and C, and the 2 group winners in League D, are robotically promoted to Leagues A, B and C, respectively.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, left, hands Portugal's captain Cristiano Ronaldo the trophy at the end of the UEFA Nations League final soccer match between Portugal and Netherlands at the Dragao stadium in Porto, Portugal, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Portugal won 1-0. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin (left) fingers the inaugural UEFA Nations League trophy to Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo after his staff defeated the Netherlands within the closing in Porto on June 9, 2019. Portugal have a beneficial group stage attract League A this time [Armando Franca/AP]

⚽ Which staff shouldn’t be taking part in within the Nations League?

Russia is the one staff that won’t play within the 2024-2025 Nations League.

Each UEFA and world soccer’s governing physique, the Federation Internationale de Soccer Affiliation (FIFA), determined in February 2022 that every one Russian groups – nationwide and membership sides – could be suspended from participation following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

⚽ Who’re the favourites to win the 2024-2025 Nations League?

Spain, which gained the Nations League in 2022-23 and the Euro 2024 title, is among the many event’s favourites.

Former champions France and Portugal, together with Germany and England, are thought-about to be sturdy contenders.

⚽ Which international locations have gained the UEFA Nations League?

  • 2018-2019: Portugal – beat Netherlands 1-0 within the closing
  • 2020-2021: France – beat Spain 2-1 within the closing
  • 2022-2023: Spain – beat Croatia 5-4 on penalties within the closing
France's players celebrate their victory at the end of the UEFA Nations League final soccer match between France and Spain at the San Siro stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
France’s UEFA Nations League triumph in 2021 got here three years after they gained the World Cup in Russia. They’ve a tricky group in League A, having been drawn alongside Euro 2020 winners Italy [Luca Bruno/AP]

⚽ How a lot is the prize cash for successful the UEFA Nations League?

The precise prize cash for the 2024-2025 Nations League has but to be disclosed.

On the 2022-2023 Nations League, Spain collected 10.5 million euros ($11.7m) for successful the occasion, whereas runners-up Croatia acquired 9 million euros ($10m).

⚽ How is World Cup qualification linked to the UEFA Nations League?

The 2024-2025 Nations League will probably be partially linked with European qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The 12 group winners after the primary spherical (group stage) will qualify immediately for the World Cup, whereas the runners-up of every group will enter the World Cup playoffs.

The 4 best-ranked Nations League group winners who don’t qualify both of these methods can even go into the World Cup playoffs.

2026 FIFA World Cup Trophy on display before press conference at Rockefeller Plaza. Thursday, June 16, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will probably be held in the USA, Canada and Mexico. The worldwide showpiece occasion would be the first version of the quadrennial event through which 48 groups take part [Noah K. Murray/AP]

All through the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League, you possibly can hold updated on all the newest soccer information, in addition to stay textual content commentary of choose matches, through the Al Jazeera Sport soccer web page.

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