Nations League 2028-29: new format, three leagues and how the teams will be split

UEFA has settled on a new format for the 2028-29 Nations League, an edition that will feature three leagues and whose composition will depend directly on what happens during the 2026-27 qualifying phase. Spain begins its camp for that competition this Tuesday, and the tournament now carries double weight: it offers a shot at the title and also sets the starting grid for the next edition.

• The allocation of teams for the 2028-29 Nations League will come from the overall ranking of the 2026-27 campaign.
• The future League A will hold the top 18 teams in the ranking, League B positions 19 to 36 and League C positions 37 to 54.
• The League A quarter-finals and the promotion and relegation play-offs in March 2027 will be decisive.
• Four League B group winners and four winners of the League A-B play-offs will complete the top tier.
• League C will include six teams coming from the current League D.

How the 2028-29 Nations League ranking will be built

The league line-up for 2028-29 will not be completed until the matches scheduled for March 2027 are over. That window includes the League A quarter-finals, the play-offs between League A and League B, and the play-offs between League C and League D. All those ties will feed an overall ranking that will order the 54 participating teams.

Which teams will form League A in 2028-29

The top tier of the 2028-29 Nations League will be made up of the teams placed from 1 to 18 in the overall ranking. Eight sides will enter as quarter-finalists from League A, joined by the two best-ranked third-place teams from that same league. The list is completed by the four League B group winners and the four winners of the play-offs between League A and League B.

With 18 teams, League A grows compared with previous formats and becomes a wider elite. The system rewards those who win their League B group, giving them direct access to compete against Europe's strongest national teams in the following edition.

League B in 2028-29: positions 19 to 36 in the ranking

The second tier will bring together the teams ranked from 19 to 36. Among them will be the two worst-ranked quarter-finalists from League A, the four sides eliminated in the League A-B play-offs and another four teams that finish third in League B.

That group is expanded with the four League C group winners and the four winners of the play-offs between League B and League C. The result is an 18-team division that mixes sides fighting to stay in the elite with others arriving on the back of promotion from lower tiers.

League C in 2028-29: positions 37 to 54 and the end of League D

The third tier will include the teams ranked from 37 to 54. It will feature the four losers of the play-offs between League B and League C, the eight teams that finish third and fourth in League C, and six teams coming from League D.

The competition is therefore split into three leagues of 18 teams each, removing the four-division structure used until now. The new set-up reflects UEFA's effort to fine-tune the tournament and give greater weight to results earned in each edition.

What Spain is playing for in the 2026-27 Nations League

Spain enters the qualifying phase with an eye on the League A quarter-finals. Finishing among the best sides not only opens the door to fighting for the trophy, it also shapes the position the team will take into the 2028-29 Nations League. Results up to March 2027 will determine Spain's place in the overall ranking and, with it, the league in which the team competes.

The format of the edition about to begin therefore carries extra importance for every national side. Every point counts for the immediate future and for the structure of a competition that will debut a new format in two years.

Frequently asked questions about the new Nations League format