Nations League 2026-27 starts Thursday: Full format explained and every group revealed

The 2026-27 Uefa Nations League campaign gets under way on Thursday, with nations across four divisions battling for promotion, relegation and a secondary route into major tournaments.

Since its launch in 2018, the competition has crowned four different men's champions — Portugal (twice), Spain and France — and has become a permanent fixture of the international calendar.

How the format works

The Nations League splits nations into four leagues based on performance, with each side competing for promotion and relegation in every campaign. The best-performing nations in League A advance to the play-offs, while the competition also offers a route into World Cups and European Championships — though no nation can qualify for a major tournament through the Nations League alone.

Of the four leagues, teams are split into smaller groups. Leagues A, B and C each contain four groups of four, while League D contains just six teams. Uefa also runs a women's Nations League using a similar structure.

Between September and November, every team faces the others in its group home and away. In League A, the top two sides from each group progress to the quarter-finals, where a knockout tournament decides the overall winner.

In Leagues B, C and D, each group winner is promoted one league, while the bottom side in each League A, B and C group is relegated. Teams finishing second in Leagues B, C and D enter relegation play-offs against the third-placed teams in Leagues A, B and C.

The March 2027 international break hosts the League A quarter-finals and the relegation play-offs between League A/B and League B/C. The semi-finals and final take place in June 2027, alongside the League C/D play-off.

Crucially, the best Nations League performers who fail to qualify for the 2028 European Championships through the standard route enter play-offs for the final qualification spots.

Who is in each league?

League A

Group A1: France, Italy, Belgium, Turkey
Group A2: Germany, Netherlands, Serbia, Greece
Group A3: Spain, Croatia, England, Czech Republic
Group A4: Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Wales

League B

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

League C

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

League D

Group D1: Gibraltar, Malta, Andorra
Group D2: Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein

Beyond Europe

Nations League-style competitions also exist in Asia and across North and Central America. South America does not currently have a men's edition, but reports in late 2025 suggested CONMEBOL may be weighing up launching its own equivalent. A South American Nations League does exist in women's football. Africa and Oceania remain the only confederations without any Nations League competition.

This article draws on reporting from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team.