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Germany v France tops Uefa Nations League debut week – so what is it?
by Steve Clare
The first ever Uefa Nations League (UNL) starts this week with Germany v France topping the bill. The World Cup winners travel to Germany in Group A1 of the new competition this Thursday.
WHAT IS THE UEFA NATIONS LEAGUE?
The UNL is a new biennial tournament designed to add a competitive element to the international breaks, in place of the somewhat meaningless friendlies federations HAVE arbitrarily organised in the past.
The UNL is made up of separate four leagues almost like divisions, with the teams in each league decided by their UEFA coefficient. Germany and France are therefore in League A, while minnows such as Gibraltar and San Marino lounge in League D.
The four leagues will each be split into four smaller sub-groups made up of three or four teams. These teams will play each other twice in the three international breaks between now and November.
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The UNL has promotion and relegation. The team that finishes bottom of League A will be relegated to League B, while the team that finishes top of League B will be promoted to League A for the 2020/21 Nations League tournament.
NO MORE EMPTY SUMMERS
The Nations League Finals in June 2019 will occur in the odd numbered years without a World Cup or European Championship. The finals will be made up of the four group winners of League A; these four teams will take part in two semi-finals, a third-place play-off and a final in a yet-to-be-decided host country.
THURSDAY’S GAMES
GROUP C3
Norway v Cyprus
Slovenia v Bulgaria
GROUP D1
Kazakhstan v Georgia
Latvia v Andorra
GROUP D4
Armenia v Liechtenstein
Gibraltar v FYR Macedonia
GROUP B1
Czech Republic v Ukraine
GROUP B4
Wales v Republic of Ireland
UEFA NATIONS LEAGUES:
LEAGUE A
Group 1: France, Germany, Netherlands
Group 2: Belgium, Iceland, Switzerland
Group 3: Italy, Poland, Portugal
Group 4: Croatia, England, Spain
LEAGUE B
Group 1: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine
Group 2: Russia, Sweden, Turkey
Group 3: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland
Group 4: Denmark, Republic of Ireland, Wales
LEAGUE C
Group 1: Albania, Israel, Scotland
Group 2: Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary
Group 3: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Norway, Slovenia
Group 4: Lithuania, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia
LEAGUE D
Group 1: Andorra, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia
Group 2: Belarus, Luxembourg, Moldova, San Marino
Group 3: Azerbaijan, Faroe Islands, Kosovo, Malta
Group 4: Armenia, FYR Macedonia, Gibraltar, Liechtenstein
