The UEFA Men’s Nations League is a biennial tournament involving all eligible men’s national teams in UEFA, to be played in the twelve months following each Men’s World Cup or Men’s European Championship.

Teams in the Men’s Nations League are divided into four leagues. There are sixteen teams in League A, sixteen in League B, sixteen in League C, and six in League D. Teams in League A play for the Men’s Nations League championship, and teams in Leagues B, C, and D play for promotion to the next higher league.

ALLOCATION TO LEAGUES

Teams have been allocated to the leagues based upon their performances in the 2022-3 UEFA Men’s Nations League.

• League A:
  • Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland
  • Promoted from League B: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Israel, Scotland, Serbia
• League B:
  • Albania, Finland, Iceland, Ireland Rep, Montenegro, Norway, Slovenia, Ukraine
  • Promoted from League C: Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Türkı̇ye
  • Relegated from League A: Austria, Czechia, England, Wales
• League C:
  • Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Faroe Is, Kosovo, Lithuania, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Northern Ireland, Slovakia
  • Promoted from League D: Estonia, Latvia
  • Relegated from League B: Armenia, Romania, Sweden
• League D:
  • Andorra, Liechtenstein, Malta, Moldova, San Marino
  • Relegated from League C: Gibraltar

Russia have been disqualified due to their invasion and ongoing war in Ukraine.

LEAGUE PHASE

In the league phase, each league is divided into groups, and teams in each group play one another twice. The league phase is held in September through November of even years, immediately after the Men’s World Cup or the Men’s European Championship.

The draw for the 2024 league phase was held on THU 08 FEB 2024 in Paris, FRA.

In League A, there are four groups, each containing four teams. The top two teams in each group advance to the elimination phase. The third placed teams in each group play in the League B promotion playoffs, and the last placed teams are relegated to League B for the next edition of the tournament.

LEAGUE A POR CRO SCO POL FRA ITA BEL ISR GER NED HUN BIH ESP DEN SRB SUI		ADVANCE TO ELIMINATION PHASE CRO DEN FRA GER ITA NED POR ESP
		LEAGUE B PROMOTION PLAYOFFS BEL HUN SCO SRB
		RELEGATED TO LEAGUE B BIH ISR POL SUI

Likewise, in League B, there are four groups, each containing four teams. The first placed teams in each group are promoted to League A, and the second placed teams play in the League B promotion playoffs. The third placed teams play in the League C promotion playoffs, and the last placed teams are relegated to League C.

		PROMOTED TO LEAGUE A CZE ENG NOR WAL
LEAGUE B CZE UKR GEO ALB ENG GRE IRL FIN NOR AUT SVN KAZ WAL TUR ISL MNE		LEAGUE B PROMOTION PLAYOFFS AUT GRE TUR UKR
		LEAGUE C PROMOTION PLAYOFFS GEO ISL IRL SVN
		RELEGATED TO LEAGUE C ALB FIN KAZ MNE

In League C, there are four groups, each containing four teams. The first placed teams in each group are promoted to League B, and the second placed teams play in the League C promotion playoffs. Of the last placed teams, the two highest ranked play in the League D promotion playoffs, and the other two are relegated to League D.

		PROMOTED TO LEAGUE B MKD NIR ROU SWE
LEAGUE C SWE SVK EST AZE ROU KOS CYP LTU NIR BUL BLR LUX MKD ARM FRO LVA		LEAGUE C PROMOTION PLAYOFFS ARM BUL KOS SVK
		LEAGUE D PROMOTION PLAYOFFS LVA LUX
		RELEGATED TO LEAGUE D AZE LTU

In League D, there are two groups, each containing three teams. The first placed teams in each group are promoted to League C, and the second placed teams play in the League D promotion playoffs.

		PROMOTED TO LEAGUE C MDA SMR
LEAGUE D SMR GIB LIE MDA MLT AND		LEAGUE D PROMOTION PLAYOFFS GIB MLT

PLAYOFFS

The promotion playoffs are played after the conclusion of the group phase. Each playoff series is played over two legs, between teams from two different leagues. The draw for the playoffs will be held on FRI 22 NOV 2024 in Nyon, SUI.

There are four League B promotion playoffs, each between a third placed team from League A and a second placed team from League B. The winning team is placed in League A for the next edition of the tournament, and the losing team is placed in League B. The League B promotion playoffs are to be played in MAR 2025.

LEAGUE B PROMOTION TUR HUN UKR BEL AUT SRB GRE SCO		TO LEAGUE A BEL GRE SRB TUR
		TO LEAGUE B AUT HUN SCO UKR

There are four League C promotion playoffs, each between a third placed team from League B and a second placed team from League C. The winning team is placed in League B for the next edition of the tournament, and the losing team is placed in League C. The League C promotion playoffs are to be played in MAR 2025.

LEAGUE C PROMOTION KOS ISL BUL IRL ARM GEO SVK SVN		TO LEAGUE B GEO IRL KOS SVN
		TO LEAGUE C ARM BUL ISL SVK

There are two League D promotion playoffs, each between a last placed team from League C and a second placed team from League D. The winning team is placed in League C for the next edition of the tournament, and the losing team is placed in League D. The League D promotion playoffs are to be played in MAR 2026.

LEAGUE D PROMOTION GIB LVA MLT LUX		TO LEAGUE C
		TO LEAGUE D

ELIMINATION PHASE

The top two teams in each League A group advance to the elimination phase. The draw for the elimination phase was held on FRI 22 NOV 2024 in Nyon, SUI.

The elimination phase begins with the quarterfinals, played in March of odd years. Each quarterfinal is played over two legs.

The quarterfinal winners advance to the final round, held in June of odd years. One of the participating teams is chosen to host the final round. Germany have been chosen to host in 2025.

The teams are drawn into two semifinal matches. The winners contest the final match, and the losers contest the third place match.

QUARTERFINALS NED ESP CRO FRA DEN POR ITA GER

FINAL ROUND GER POR [W-SF1] [W-SF2] ESP FRA   [L-SF1] [L-SF2]

CHAMPION

MEN’S WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION

Teams that finish atop their groups in the UEFA Men’s Nations League will also have the opportunity to earn a second chance to qualify for the 2026 Men’s World Cup.

At the end of the UEFA group phase of qualifiers, twelve teams will qualify directly for Canada/​Mexico/​USA 2026, and twelve other teams will advance to the playoffs.

The remaining four places in the playoffs will be awarded to the highest ranked Men’s Nations League group winners who did not already qualify or advance to the playoffs, sorted by league, points, and goal difference.