The road to the UEFA Nations League 2026-27 begins on Thursday, with 54 teams in action in the league phase. Portugal, the record two-time champions, will look to successfully retain the title they won in 2025. But with reigning World Cup winners Spain, and former champions France and heavyweights England also in the mix, the title defence will be far from easy.
The UEFA Nations League was founded in 2018 to reduce the number of meaningless friendlies and give nations competitive matches against equally-ranked teams. In this competition, countries from across Europe participate in a league structure, which features promotion and relegation. A total of 54 teams will participate in the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League.
They are divided into the following leagues and groups, following the draw in Brussels, Belgium in February: Group A1: France, Italy, Belgium, Turkiye Group A2: Germany, Netherlands, Serbia, Greece Group A3: Spain, Croatia, England, Czechia Group A4: Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Wales Group B1: Scotland, Switzerland, Slovenia, North Macedonia Group B2: Hungary, Ukraine, Georgia, Northern Ireland Group B3: Israel, Austria, Republic of Ireland, Kosovo Group B4: Poland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Sweden Group C1: Albania, Finland, Belarus, San Marino Group C2: Montenegro, Armenia, Cyprus, Latvia Group C3: Kazakhstan, Slovakia, Faroe Islands, Moldova Group C4: Iceland, Bulgaria, Estonia, Luxembourg Group D1: Gibraltar, Malta, Andorra Group D2: Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein UEFA has earmarked the following dates for the Nations League 2026-27: Matchday 1: September 24-26 Matchday 2: September 27-29 Matchday 3: October 1-3 Matchday 4: October 4-6 Matchday 5: November 12-14 Matchday 6: November 15-17 Quarterfinals, League A/B and League B/C promotion/relegation playoffs The teams compete across four different divisions, facing every other team in their group twice: once at home and once away. The league phase ends in November. In the top-most league, League A, the top two teams from each group go through to the quarterfinals, which take place in March 2027.
The finals will again be contested between four teams. The host and the dates of the finals have not been confirmed yet. As for each of the group winners in Leagues B, C and D, they will be promoted to the league above.
The teams finishing bottom of their groups in Leagues A, B and C will be relegated one league below. Here’s the full breakdown of the promotion and relegation scenarios: According to European football’s governing body, UEFA, the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League is expected to be linked to qualification for UEFA EURO 2028 in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Based on their UEFA Nations League results, some teams will be given a second chance to enter the playoffs for the final tournament.
Cristiano Ronaldo will feature in the upcoming Nations League after being called up for their upcoming four fixtures. Last weekend, he was included in new coach Jorge Jesus’s first 25-man squad. However, in August, the 41-year-old fuelled speculation about his retirement plans after saying the coming year would probably be the last of his playing career.
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