The success of the new version of the Champions League has inspired UEFA. The introduction of a championship phase as the first round has pleased football fans, despite the accumulating matches. The dramatic scenarios to qualify one team and eliminate another at the other end of the continent (Marseille can attest to this) are still fresh in everyone’s minds. This model will now be exported to national team matches. UEFA has announced that after Euro 2028 in the UK, there will be another format for European qualifications and the Nations League.
The recent competition, as mentioned earlier, bids farewell to its 4 leagues (4 groups of 4 teams for the top 3 leagues and 2 groups of 3 teams for league D) to condense them into three leagues (A, B, and C). These leagues will be divided into three pots during the draw (from the strongest, the “seeded teams,” to the weakest). 2 teams from each pot will join a group to create groups of 6 where everyone plays once, except against one opponent where there will be a home and away format. Each nation will play 6 matches in their group against 5 opponents.
The structure is similar to the current final 8 format. The top two teams from each group in League A qualify for the quarter-finals, along with the two best 3rd-placed teams. The bottom three teams in 6th and last place will be relegated to League B. In the lower tier, the top three teams from each group will move up to League A. There will also be playoffs between the 4th and 5th-placed teams in League A and the 2nd and 3rd-placed teams in League B. This system repeats between League B and League C. Note that, with 55 European federations, a League C group will consist of a 7th team.
The qualifications for Euro 2032 will follow a similar pattern. There will now be 2 leagues to accommodate all national teams. League 1 will consist of 3 groups of 12 teams (the 36 teams from Leagues A and B of the Nations League), while League 2 will have 3 groups of 6 teams (one with 7 opponents). The draw will have three pots of 12 teams, including one called the “seeded team.” There will be 4 teams from each pot per group. All nations will have 3 home and 3 away matches, similar to the new European cups.
Regarding European qualifications (for the Euros and World Cup) after this phase, there seems to be no consensus yet. “The highest-ranked teams from each group in League 1 will qualify directly, while the remaining places will be decided through a playoff system, providing fair qualification chances to teams in League 2 as well,” UEFA explains, without further details. The number of qualified teams at the end of this round, where the host countries of the competitions will also participate, is not yet known, even if they are automatically qualified. UEFA’s executive committee is expected to confirm these formats in September.
Published on 20/05/2026 19:03, Last updated on 20/05/2026 22:15.
