Thursday, November 7, 2024
The draw has set the groups for the three leagues played between February and June 2025.
The league stage draw for the second edition of the UEFA Women’s Nations League has been made in Nyon by UEFA managing director of women’s football Nadine Kessler and former England player Fara Williams.
The 53 participating teams (including Gibraltar and Liechtenstein, both entering their first senior women’s competition, contributing to a record entry) are divided into three leagues (two of 16 and the other of 21) on the basis of the 2024 Women’s European Qualifiers overall phase rankings.
The league stage will determine which four teams progress to the finals (which will now be played as two-legged ties) and also promotion and relegation between the leagues ahead of the European Qualifiers phase for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
League A groups
Group A1: Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Scotland
Group A2: France, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland
Group A3: Spain (holders), England, Belgium, Portugal
Group A4: Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Wales
League B groups
Group B1: Poland, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania
Group B2: Republic of Ireland, Türkiye, Slovenia, Greece
Group B3: Finland, Serbia, Hungary, Belarus
Group B4: Czechia, Ukraine, Croatia, Albania
League C groups
Group C1: Slovakia, Faroe Islands, Moldova, Gibraltar
Group C2: Malta, Georgia, Cyprus, Andorra
Group C3: Luxembourg, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
Group C4: Azerbaijan, Montenegro, Lithuania
Group C5: Israel, Bulgaria, Estonia
Group C6: Kosovo, Latvia, North Macedonia
League stage
Matchdays 1 & 2: Between 19 and 26 February 2025
Matchdays 3 & 4: Between 2 and 8 April 2025
Matchdays 5 & 6: Between 28 May and 3 June 2025
Finals
Draw: 6 June 2025, Nyon (date TBC)
Semi-finals (two legs): Between 22 and 28 October 2025
Final/third-place play-off (two legs): Between 26 November and 2 December 2025
Promotion/relegation play-offs
Draw: 6 June 2025, Nyon (date TBC)
Matches (two legs): Between 22 and 28 October 2025
All matches in the league stage are played according to a league system, with each team playing one home match and one away match against each of the other teams in their group. Three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a defeat.
The four League A group winners qualify for the knockout finals.
League A
The top two teams in each group will remain in League A for the European Qualifiers for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
The four third-placed teams play off against the second-placed teams in each group of League B. The winners of each tie will play in League A for the European Qualifiers phase; the defeated teams will play in League B.
The fourth-placed teams are relegated to League B.
League B
The four group winners are promoted to League A.
The four second-placed teams play against the third-placed teams in League A. The winners of each tie will play in League A; the defeated teams will play in League B.
The two best third-placed teams play off against the two best-ranked second-placed teams of League C. The winners will play in League B for the European Qualifiers phase; the defeated teams will play in League C.
The two lowest-ranked third-placed teams and the four fourth-placed teams are relegated to League C.
League C
The six group winners are promoted to League C.
The two best-ranked second-placed teams play off against the two best third-placed teams of League B. The winners will play in League B for the European Qualifiers phase; the defeated teams will play in League C.
The remaining teams stay in League C.
The finals will be played as two-legged ties, with two semi-finals, a third-place play-off and a final. A draw will determine the semi-final ties and the home team in each of the first legs.
The final winners are declared the UEFA Women’s Nations League winners.
All ties are played over two legs, with the pairings determined by a draw. The third-placed teams are seeded for the draw and play their respective second-leg matches at home.
The draw started with League C, followed by League B and League A.
League C: Three groups of four teams and three group of three teams
Based on the 2024 Women’s European Qualifiers overall phase rankings, the 21 teams were divided into four draw pots as follows:
Pot 1: Slovakia, Azerbaijan, Malta, Israel, Kosovo, Luxembourg
Pot 2: Montenegro, Georgia, Bulgaria, Latvia, Faroe Islands, Armenia
Pot 3: North Macedonia, Estonia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Cyprus
Pot 4: Andorra, Gibraltar, Liechtenstein
Based on UEFA Executive Committee decisions valid at the time of the draw, Azerbaijan and Armenia could not be drawn in the same group.
To minimise teams’ travel burden, Kazakhstan could be drawn in a group with only one of the following: Malta, Faroe Islands, Andorra, Gibraltar.
The draw started with Pot 1, which contained six balls. The drawn teams were assigned to the groups in ascending order from C1 to C6, unless a draw condition applied.
• A first ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C1
• A second ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C2
• A third ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C3
• A fourth ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C4
• The fifth ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C5
• The sixth ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C6
The draw continued with Pot 2 and Pot 3 and followed the same rules as described above for Pot 1.
The draw continued with Pot 4, which contained three balls. The drawn teams were assigned to the groups in ascending order from C1 to C3, unless a draw condition applied.
• A first ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C1
• A second ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C2
• A third ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group C3
League B: Four groups of four teams
Based on the 2024 Women’s European Qualifiers overall phase rankings, the 16 teams were divided into four draw pots as follows:
Pot 1: Finland, Czechia, Republic of Ireland, Poland
Pot 2: Serbia, Ukraine, Northern Ireland, Türkiye
Pot 3: Croatia, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia
Pot 4: Romania, Belarus, Greece, Albania
Based on UEFA Executive Committee decisions valid at the time of the draw, Ukraine and Belarus could not be drawn in the same group.
The draw started with Pot 1, which contained four balls. The drawn teams were assigned to the groups in ascending order from B1 to B4, unless a draw condition applied:
• A first ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group B1
• A second ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group B2
• A third ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group B3
• The fourth ball was drawn and the team assigned to Group B4
The draw continued with Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4 and followed the same rules as described above for Pot 1.
League A: Four groups of four teams
Based on the 2024 Women’s European Qualifiers overall phase rankings, the 16 teams were divided into four draw pots as follows:
Pot 1: Spain (holders), Germany, France, Italy
Pot 2: Iceland, Denmark, England, Netherlands
Pot 3: Sweden, Norway, Austria, Belgium
Pot 4: Portugal, Scotland, Switzerland, Wales
The draw for League A followed the same procedure as for League B.
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