The UEFA Nations League Explained

Interested in watching the Nations League for the first time? Learn more about the Nations League format, and how it differs from other leagues, with our guide.

Whether you’re new to the world of football, or simply looking for more information about the wider game, there are certainly plenty of options to choose from when it comes international football.

And there’s no better place to start than the UEFA Nations League, especially if you’re searching for something to scratch that Euro’s itch while you wait for the next tournament. But what is the Nations League, and how does it differ from the other international tournaments?

Well, if you’re asking these questions, don’t worry. We’ve broken down everything you need to know in our ‘Nations League explained’ guide. From the competition’s origins to how its promotion and relegation systems work, all this essential information and more is covered below!

What is the UEFA Nations League?

A relatively new international tournament in the eyes of football, the UEFA Nations League has nevertheless become a firm fixture of the European football scene since its creation in 2018.

Originally designed to cut down on the number of low-stakes friendly games being played between major international competitions, the Nations League instead hosts competitive fixtures in a tournament held every two years.

Home to 54 recognised European teams, each edition sees these nations pitted against each other, with countries being relegated and promoted between groups based on performance – as you might see in the domestic leagues, such as the Premier League.

And, as you might expect, the best teams then go on to play each other in a series of knockout rounds in order to see which country will be crowned that year’s champion. In other words, the UEFA Nations League format is similar to the old-style UEFA Champions League, only with countries rather than European teams.

How does the Nations League work?

We’ve introduced the Nations League, but how exactly does it work? There are some key identifiers that set it apart, including how groups are decided, and how the finals play out.

The Nations League format explained

When it was formed in 2018, the Nations League format was built around four Leagues labelled A-D, with Leagues A, B, and D containing 12 teams in 4 groups, and League C containing 15 teams in one group of 3 and 3 groups of 4.

Team placement and ranking within these groups were based on the coefficients given to countries from their 2018 World Cup performance, with the higher-ranked teams being placed in the top leagues and groups, and the lower teams in the bottom leagues and groups.

However, come the 2020/21 season, this set-up was deemed too unwieldy, and as of 2024/25, the UEFA Nations League format now adheres to the following structure:

• League A – 4 groups of four

• League B – 4 groups of four

• League C – 4 groups of four

• League D – 2 groups of three

Using the previous Nations League season performances, teams are then grouped into each league for the following seasons, with League A containing the teams ranked 1-16, League B teams 16-32, League C teams 32-48, and League D the remaining 6 sides.

How does the UEFA Nations League work out league groups?

Once all 54 teams have been assigned to their relevant leagues, each league then has several pots created within them for group selection to ensure an even spread of teams throughout the groups.

These pots are again based on their performance in the previous season, with the top 4 teams of a league being in one pot, the second-best in another, and so and so forth until all league teams have been placed in a pot.

From here, the teams are drawn randomly from each pot and assigned to a group within their league, with each group being formed from a single team from each pot to create the opening fixtures for that season.

The teams within these groups will then play each other in a home and away round-robin format to determine the group winner, at which point, promotion, relegation, and knockout round qualifications will be decided.

The Nations League: Promotion and relegation explained

Much like club football, such as the Premier League and Championship, the end of a Nations League season will see the best and worst teams of each internal League either promoted or relegated to the leagues directly above and below.

Naturally, the winners and runners-up of League A cannot be promoted, while the worst-performing teams of League D will remain in the very bottom spots as they cannot be ranked any lower.

As for the winners of League B, C, and D, each of these teams will be automatically promoted to the league above them. Meanwhile, the worst teams of League A and B, and the two worst teams of League C, drop down one league.

Finally, in order to decide the rest of the league positions for next season, the remaining teams will play the following matches in a set of two-legged play-offs, with winners either retaining their spot or being promoted up a league:

• The third-place teams of League A will play the runners-up of League B

• The third-place teams in League B will play the runners-up of League C

• The two best fourth-place teams in League C will play the runners-up of League D.

How does the Nations League knockout format work?

Once all regular league games have been played, the top two teams from each group in League A will go on to compete in the Nations League knockout format, which mimics a quarter-final stage.

Here, the winner of one league group will play the runner-up of another in a two-legged home-and-away format, with the winners (based on aggregate) advancing into the final four.

These final four teams then play in a standard knockout semi-final and final set-up (with a third-place playoff) to determine who wins that season’s Nations League.

Who is playing in the 2024/2025 Nations League?

As of this year’s draws, the current leagues and groups are as follows:

League A:

League B:

League C:

League D:

What is the 2024/25 Nations League schedule?

Ready to catch your favourite team’s game? Below are the scheduled dates of play for both the league games and knockout stages:

League games (games played simultaneously):

• Matchday 1: 5-7 September 2024.

• Matchday 2: 8-10 September 2024.

• Matchday 3: 10-12 October 2024.

• Matchday 4: 13-15 October 2024.

• Matchday 5: 14-16 November 2024.

• Matchday 6: 17-19 November 2024.

League quarter-finals and play-offs:

• League A/B and League B/C play-offs: 20-23 March 2025.

• League A quarter-finals: 20-23 March 2025.

• League C/D play-offs: 26-31 March 2025.

• Semi-finals: 4-5 June 2025.

• Third-place play-off: 8 June 2025.

• Final: 8 June 2025.

Which teams are through to the knockout stages

With the league structure now completed and the knockout stages decided, the following teams will be playing each other in the quarter-finals:

• A.      Italy vs Germany

• B.      Denmark vs Portugal

• C.      Netherlands vs Spain

• D.      Croatia vs France

Following the quarter-finals, the semi-finals will comprise of the winners of A vs B and C vs D; the teams competing in the final and third-place play-off will then be determined by the results of the semi-finals.

Which teams have previously won the Nations League?

Having only been formed in 2018, and tournaments being held every two years, there have only been three winners of the Nations League so far, with a different country winning each time:

• 2018/19 – played in Portugal:

• 2020/21 – played in Italy:

• 2022/23 – played in the Netherlands:

How does the Nations League relate to the Euros?

Finally, for those interested in how the qualifications for the next Euros might play out, the Nations Leagues does actually provide a platform for certain teams to qualify, even if they missed the opening qualification stages.

In terms of the Euros, the remaining teams in Leagues A, B, and C who have not qualified for the Euros will enter play-offs in their league, with the winner of each league group entering a knockout round, and teams from the league below filling gaps in the higher leagues if less than 4 teams are present.

You’ll notice that League D does not feature here. However, should there be space in any leagues that need filling, then the top-ranked winner of League D can fill this available spot first – assuming they have not already qualified – with the remaining gaps being filled based on team rankings from the Nations League tournament.

From here, the four teams in the semi-finals will play against each other, with the results determining their seeding for the Euros.

Can you qualify for the World Cup through the Nations League?

Traditional World Cup qualification involves 12 European groups, consisting of four teams each. The winners of each group then go on to qualify directly for the World Cup.

However, the 12 runners-up and the four best-ranked Nations League teams yet to qualify or place as runners-up will then compete in four play-offs styled as semi-finals and finals to pick the final four teams for the World Cup.

Follow the entire UEFA Nations League with Betway

And there you have it, that’s everything you need to know about the UEFA Nations League!

Are you confident in your team’s victory? Perhaps, you’re rooting for another country to beat out the predicted winners? Either way, you can follow the entirety of the Nations League as it unfolds with the Betway team!

Simply head over to our football blog to get the low-down on the upcoming games and see the odds of your nation’s chance to win.