2018–19 UEFA Nations League

The 2018–19 UEFA Nations League was the inaugural season of the UEFA Nations League, an international association football competition involving the men's national teams of the 55 member associations of UEFA.[1] The league phase of the competition was played between September and November 2018, with the finals tournament for the group winners from League A taking place in Portugal in June 2019. Team performances in the league phase were used to seed teams for the qualifying group stage of UEFA Euro 2020, and awarded berths in the play-offs, which decided four of the twenty-four final tournament slots.

2018–19 UEFA Nations League
Tournament details
DatesLeague phase:
6 September – 20 November 2018
Nations League Finals:
5–9 June 2019
Teams55
Final positions
Champions Portugal (1st title)
Runners-up Netherlands
Third place England
Fourth place  Switzerland
Tournament statistics
Matches played142
Goals scored342 (2.41 per match)
Attendance2,467,041 (17,374 per match)
Top scorer(s)Serbia Aleksandar Mitrović (6 goals)

Format

The format and schedule of the UEFA Nations League was formally approved by the UEFA Executive Committee on 4 December 2014.[2][3] According to the approved format,[1][4][5] the 55 UEFA national teams were divided into four divisions (called "leagues"):[4] 12 teams in League A, 12 teams in League B, 15 teams in League C, and 16 teams in League D.[4] For the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League, teams were divided according to their UEFA national team coefficients after the conclusion of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers (play-off results were not included), with the highest-ranked teams playing in League A, etc.[6]

Each league was divided into four groups of three or four teams, so each team played four or six matches within their group (using the home-and-away round-robin format), on double matchdays in September, October and November 2018.

In the top division, League A, teams competed to become the UEFA Nations League champions. The four group winners of League A qualified for the Nations League Finals in June 2019, which was played in a knockout format, consisting of the semi-finals, third place play-off, and final. The semi-final pairings, along with the administrative home teams for the third place play-off and final, were determined by means of an open draw on 3 December 2018.[7] Host country Portugal was selected among the four qualified teams on 3 December 2018 by the UEFA Executive Committee,[8][9] with the winners of the final crowned as the Nations League champions.

Teams also competed for promotion and relegation to a higher or lower league. In each league, the four group winners (except League A) were promoted, while the last-placed teams of each group (except League D) were initially to be relegated; the exception was in League C, where due to different-sized groups, the three fourth-placed teams and the lowest-ranking third-placed team were initially to be relegated. However, due to a revamp of the format for the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League, no teams were eventually relegated, and some second-placed and third-placed teams were also promoted.

Tiebreakers for group ranking

If two or more teams in the same group were equal on points on completion of the league phase, the following tie-breaking criteria were applied:[6]

  1. Higher number of points obtained in the matches played among the teams in question;
  2. Superior goal difference in matches played among the teams in question;
  3. Higher number of goals scored in the matches played among the teams in question;
  4. Higher number of goals scored away from home in the matches played among the teams in question;
  5. If, after having applied criteria 1 to 4, teams still had an equal ranking, criteria 1 to 4 were reapplied exclusively to the matches between the teams in question to determine their final rankings.[note 1] If this procedure did not lead to a decision, criteria 6 to 10 applied;
  6. Superior goal difference in all group matches;
  7. Higher number of goals scored in all group matches;
  8. Higher number of away goals scored in all group matches;
  9. Higher number of wins in all group matches;
  10. Higher number of away wins in all group matches;
  11. Disciplinary points in all group matches (1 point for a single yellow card, 3 points for a red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for a direct red card, 4 points for a yellow card followed by a direct red card);
  12. Position in the UEFA national team coefficient ranking system.[note 2]

To determine the worst third-placed team in League C, the results against the teams in fourth place were discarded. The following criteria were applied:

  1. Higher number of points;
  2. Superior goal difference;
  3. Higher number of goals scored;
  4. Higher number of goals scored away from home;
  5. Higher number of wins;
  6. Higher number of wins away from home;
  7. Disciplinary points in all group matches (1 point for a single yellow card, 3 points for a red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for a direct red card, 4 points for a yellow card followed by a direct red card);
  8. Position in the UEFA national team coefficient ranking system.[note 2]

Criteria for league ranking

Individual league rankings were established according to the following criteria:[6]

  1. Position in the group;
  2. Higher number of points;
  3. Superior goal difference;
  4. Higher number of goals scored;
  5. Higher number of goals scored away from home;
  6. Higher number of wins;
  7. Higher number of wins away from home;
  8. Disciplinary points in all group matches (1 point for a single yellow card, 3 points for a red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for a direct red card, 4 points for a yellow card followed by a direct red card);
  9. Position in the UEFA national team coefficient ranking system.[note 2]

In order to rank teams in leagues composed of different-sized groups, the following procedure is applied:[6]

  1. The results against fourth-placed teams were not taken into account for the purposes of comparing teams placed first, second, and third in their respective groups.
  2. All results were taken into account for the purposes of comparing teams placed fourth in their respective groups.

The ranking of the top four teams in League A was determined by their finish in the Nations League Finals (first to fourth).[6]

Criteria for overall ranking

For the purposes of the European Championship qualifying group stage draw and the European qualifying play-offs, overall UEFA Nations League rankings were established as follows:[6]

  1. The 12 League A teams were ranked 1st to 12th according to their league rankings.
  2. The 12 League B teams were ranked 13th to 24th according to their league rankings.
  3. The 15 League C teams were ranked 25th to 39th according to their league rankings.
  4. The 16 League D teams were ranked 40th to 55th according to their league rankings.

UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying

The 2018–19 UEFA Nations League was linked with UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying, providing teams another chance to qualify for UEFA Euro 2020.

The main qualifying process began in March 2019 instead of immediately in September 2018 following the 2018 FIFA World Cup and ended in November 2019. The format remained largely the same, although only 20 of the 24 spots for the finals tournament were decided from the main qualifying process, leaving four spots still to be decided. The 55 teams were drawn into 10 groups after the completion of the UEFA Nations League (five groups of five teams and five groups of six teams, with the four UEFA Nations League Finals participants guaranteed to be drawn into groups of five teams), with the top two teams in each group qualifying.[2][3] The draw seeding was based on the overall rankings of the Nations League.[6] The qualifiers were played on double matchdays in March, June, September, October, and November 2019.[4]

Following the qualifying group stage, the qualifying play-offs took place in October and November 2020. Unlike previous editions, the participants of the play-offs were not decided based on results from the qualifying group stage. Instead, 16 teams were selected based on their performance in the Nations League. These teams were divided into four paths, each containing four teams, with one team from each path qualifying for the final tournament. Each league had its own play-off path if at least four teams were available. The Nations League group winners automatically qualified for the play-off path of their league. If a group winner had already qualified through the conventional qualifying group stage, they were replaced by the next best-ranked team in the same league. However, if there were not enough teams in the same league, then the spot would go to the next-best team in the overall ranking. However, group winners could not face teams from a higher league.[10]

Each play-off path featured two single-leg semi-finals and one single-leg final. The best-ranked team hosted the fourth-ranked team, and the second-ranked team hosted the third-ranked team. The host of the final was decided by a draw, with semi-final winner 1 or 2 hosting the final. The four play-off path winners joined the 20 teams which had already qualified for UEFA Euro 2020.[2][3]

Schedule

Below was the schedule of the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League.[6]

StageRoundDates
League phaseMatchday 16–8 September 2018
Matchday 29–11 September 2018
Matchday 311–13 October 2018
Matchday 414–16 October 2018
Matchday 515–17 November 2018
Matchday 618–20 November 2018
FinalsSemi-finals5–6 June 2019
Third place play-off9 June 2019
Final

The fixture list was confirmed by UEFA on 24 January 2018 following the draw.[11][12]

Seeding

Map showing the leagues each national team participated in.
  League A
  League B
  League C
  League D

All 55 UEFA national teams were eligible to compete in the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League. The 55 members at the time were divided into the four "Leagues" (12 teams in League A, 12 teams in League B, 15 teams in League C, and 16 teams in League D) according to their UEFA national team coefficients after the conclusion of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers (not including the play-offs), with the highest-ranked teams playing in League A, etc.[4][13][14] The seeding pots for the draw were announced on 7 December 2017.[15]

League A
PotTeamCoeffRank
1  Germany40,7471
 Portugal38,6552
 Belgium38,1233
 Spain37,3114
2  France36,6175
 England36,2316
  Switzerland34,9867
 Italy34,4268
3  Poland32,9829
 Iceland31,15510
 Croatia31,13911
 Netherlands29,86612
League B
PotTeamCoeffRank
1  Austria29,41813
 Wales29,26914
 Russia29,25815
 Slovakia28,55516
2  Sweden28,48717
 Ukraine28,28618
 Republic of Ireland28,24919
 Bosnia and Herzegovina28,20020
3  Northern Ireland27,12721
 Denmark27,05222
 Czech Republic27,02823
 Turkey26,53824
League C
PotTeamCoeffRank
1  Hungary26,48625
 Romania26,05726
 Scotland25,66227
 Slovenia25,14828
2  Greece24,93129
 Serbia24,84730
 Albania24,43031
 Norway24,20832
3  Montenegro23,91233
 Israel22,79234
 Bulgaria22,09135
 Finland20,50136
4  Cyprus19,49137
 Estonia19,44138
 Lithuania18,10139
League D
PotTeamCoeffRank
1  Azerbaijan17,76140
 Macedonia17,07141
 Belarus16,86842
 Georgia16,52343
2  Armenia15,84644
 Latvia15,82145
 Faroe Islands15,49046
 Luxembourg14,23147
3  Kazakhstan13,43148
 Moldova13,13049
 Liechtenstein10,95050
 Malta10,87051
4  Andorra10,24052
 Kosovo9,95053
 San Marino8,19054
 Gibraltar7,55055

The draw for the league phase took place at the SwissTech Convention Center in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 January 2018, 12:00 CET.[16][17][18][19]

For political reasons, Armenia and Azerbaijan (due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict), as well as Russia and Ukraine (due to the Russian military intervention in Ukraine), could not be drawn in the same group. Due to winter venue restrictions, a group could contain a maximum of two of the following teams: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania. Due to excessive travel restrictions, only one of Andorra, Faroe Islands, or Gibraltar could be drawn with Kazakhstan, while Gibraltar could not be with Azerbaijan if they had Kazakhstan.[20]

League A

Group A1

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification[a]
1  Netherlands421184+47[b]Qualification for Nations League Finals2–03–0
2  France42114407[b]2–12–1
3  Germany402237−422–20–0
Source: UEFA
Notes:

Group A2

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification[a]
1   Switzerland4301145+99[b]Qualification for Nations League Finals5–26–0
2  Belgium430196+39[b]2–12–0
3  Iceland4004113−1201–20–3
Source: UEFA
Notes:

Group A3

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification[a]
1  Portugal422053+28Qualification for Nations League Finals1–01–1
2  Italy412122050–01–1
3  Poland402246−222–30–1
Source: UEFA
Notes:

Group A4

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification[a]
1  England421165+17Qualification for Nations League Finals1–22–1
2  Spain4202127+562–36–0
3  Croatia4112410−640–03–2
Source: UEFA
Notes:

Nations League Finals

The host of the Nations League Finals, Portugal, was selected from the four qualified teams. The semi-finals pairings were determined by means of an open draw, along with the administrative home teams for the third place play-off and final. The draw took place on 3 December 2018, 14:30 CET (13:30 local time), at the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin, Republic of Ireland.[7][21] For scheduling purposes, the semi-final pairing involving the host team was considered to be semi-final 1.

Times are CEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times are in parentheses).

Bracket

 
Semi-finalsFinal
 
      
 
5 June 2019 – Porto
 
 
 Portugal3
 
9 June 2019 – Porto
 
  Switzerland1
 
 Portugal1
 
6 June 2019 – Guimarães
 
 Netherlands0
 
 Netherlands (a.e.t.)3
 
 
 England1
 
Third place play-off
 
 
9 June 2019 – Guimarães
 
 
  Switzerland0 (5)
 
 
 England (p)0 (6)

Semi-finals

Portugal  3–1   Switzerland
  • Ronaldo 25', 88', 90'
Report
Attendance: 42,415[22]
Referee: Felix Brych (Germany)

Netherlands  3–1 (a.e.t.)  England
Report

Third-place play-off

Final

Portugal  1–0  Netherlands
Report

Top goalscorers

League A top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoals
1 Haris Seferovic5
2 Romelu Lukaku4
3 Marcus Rashford3
Cristiano Ronaldo
André Silva
Sergio Ramos
713 players2
2031 players1

League B

Group B1

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Ukraine (P)43015509Promotion to League A1–01–0
2  Czech Republic420244061–21–0
3  Slovakia410355034–11–2
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group B2

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Sweden (P)421153+27[b]Promotion to League A2–02–3
2  Russia421143+17[b]0–02–0
3  Turkey410347−330–11–2
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group B3

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Bosnia and Herzegovina (P)431051+410Promotion to League A1–02–0
2  Austria421132+170–01–0
3  Northern Ireland400427−501–21–2
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group B4

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Denmark (P)422041+38Promotion to League A2–00–0
2  Wales420265+161–24–1
3  Republic of Ireland402215−420–00–1
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Top goalscorers

League B top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoals
1 Edin Džeko3
Patrik Schick
3 Christian Eriksen2
Denis Cheryshev
Emre Akbaba
Yevhen Konoplyanka
Gareth Bale
832 players1

League C

Group C1

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Scotland (P)4301104+69Promotion to League B3–22–0
2  Israel (P)420265+162–12–0
3  Albania410318−730–41–0
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group C2

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Finland (P)640253+212Promotion to League B1–02–01–0
2  Hungary (P)631296+3102–02–12–0
3  Greece630345−191–01–00–1
4  Estonia611448−440–13–30–1
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group C3

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Norway (P)641172+513Promotion to League B1–02–01–0
2  Bulgaria (P)632175+2111–02–11–1
3  Cyprus612359−450–21–12–1
4  Slovenia603358−331–11–21–1
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group C4

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Serbia (P)6420114+714Promotion to League B2–22–14–1
2  Romania (P)633083+5120–00–03–0
3  Montenegro621376+170–20–12–0
4  Lithuania6006316−1300–11–21–4
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Top goalscorers

League C top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoals
1 Aleksandar Mitrović6
2 James Forrest5
3 Ádám Szalai4
4 Teemu Pukki3
Stefan Mugoša
6 Bozhidar Kraev2
Stefan Johansen
Ola Kamara
Nicolae Stanciu
George Țucudean
Adem Ljajić
Miha Zajc
1350 players1

League D

Group D1

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Georgia (P)6510122+1016Promotion to League C2–11–03–0
2  Kazakhstan (P)613287+160–21–14–0
3  Latvia604226−44[b]0–31–10–0
4  Andorra604229−74[b]1–11–10–0
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group D2

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Belarus (P)6420100+1014Promotion to League C1–00–05–0
2  Luxembourg (P)6312114+7100–24–03–0
3  Moldova (P)623145−190–01–12–0
4  San Marino6006016−1600–20–30–1
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group D3

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Kosovo (P)6420152+1314Promotion to League C4–02–03–1
2  Azerbaijan (P)623176+190–02–01–1
3  Faroe Islands6123510−551–10–33–1
4  Malta6033514−930–51–11–1
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Group D4

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion[a]
1  Macedonia (P)6501145+915Promotion to League C2–04–04–1
2  Armenia (P)6312148+6104–00–12–1
3  Gibraltar6204515−1060–22–62–1
4  Liechtenstein6114712−540–22–22–0
Source: UEFA
(P) Promoted
Notes:

Ranking of third-placed teams

PosGrpTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion
1D2  Moldova (P)623145−19Promotion to League C
2D4  Gibraltar6204515−106
3D3  Faroe Islands6123510−55
4D1  Latvia604226−44
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Away goals scored; 5) Wins; 6) Away wins; 7) Disciplinary points; 8) UEFA national team coefficient.
(P) Promoted

Top goalscorers

League D top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoals
1 Yura Movsisyan5
Stanislaw Drahun
3 Giorgi Chakvetadze4
Arbër Zeneli
5 Anton Saroka3
René Joensen
Benjamin Kololli
Danel Sinani
Ezgjan Alioski
Ilija Nestorovski
Aleksandar Trajkovski
Radu Gînsari
1314 players2
2749 players1

Overall ranking

The overall ranking after the league phase was used for seeding in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying group stage draw.[26]

League ALeague B
RnkTeamPldPts
1  Portugal48
2  Netherlands47
3  England47
4   Switzerland49
5  Belgium49
6  France47
7  Spain46
8  Italy45
9  Croatia44
10  Poland42
11  Germany42
12  Iceland40
Source: UEFA
RnkTeamPldPts
13  Bosnia and Herzegovina410
14  Ukraine49
15  Denmark48
16  Sweden47
17  Russia47
18  Austria47
19  Wales46
20  Czech Republic46
21  Slovakia43
22  Turkey43
23  Republic of Ireland42
24  Northern Ireland40
Source: UEFA
League CLeague D
RnkTeamPldPts
25  Scotland49
26  Norway49
27  Serbia48
28  Finland46
29  Bulgaria47
30  Israel46
31  Hungary46
32  Romania46
33  Greece46
34  Albania43
35  Montenegro41
36  Cyprus41
37  Estonia64
38  Slovenia63
39  Lithuania60
Source: UEFA
RnkTeamPldPts
40  Georgia616
41  Macedonia615
42  Kosovo614
43  Belarus614
44  Luxembourg610
45  Armenia610
46  Azerbaijan69
47  Kazakhstan66
48  Moldova69
49  Gibraltar66
50  Faroe Islands65
51  Latvia64
52  Liechtenstein64
53  Andorra64
54  Malta63
55  San Marino60
Source: UEFA

Prize money

The prize money to be distributed was announced in March 2018, with a total of €76.25 million in solidarity and bonus fees due to be distributed to the 55 participating national teams.[27] However, in October 2018, the solidarity fees and bonus payments for group winners were increased by 50%, while the bonuses for the teams appearing in the Nations League Finals also increased, resulting in a total of €112.875 million in prize money.[28]

The solidarity fees per team were scaled by league:

  • League A: €2.25 million
  • League B: €1.5 million
  • League C: €1.125 million
  • League D: €750,000

In addition, the group winners of each league received the following bonus fees:

  • League A group winners: €2.25 million
  • League B group winners: €1.5 million
  • League C group winners: €1.125 million
  • League D group winners: €750,000

The four group winners of League A, which participated in the Nations League Finals, also received the following bonus fees based on performance:

  • Winners: €6 million
  • Runners-up: €4.5 million
  • Third place: €3.5 million
  • Fourth place: €2.5 million

This meant that the maximum amount of solidarity and bonus fees was €10.5 million for a team from League A, €3 million for a team from League B, €2.25 million for a team from League C, and €1.5 million for a team from League D.

Euro 2020 qualifying play-offs

Teams who failed in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying group stage could still qualify for the final tournament via the play-offs. Each league in the UEFA Nations League was allocated one of the four remaining UEFA Euro 2020 places. Four teams from each league who had not already qualified for the European Championship finals competed in the play-offs of their league, which were played in October and November 2020. The play-off berths were first allocated to each group winner, and if any of the group winners had already qualified for the European Championship finals, then to the next best ranked team of the league, etc.

The team selection process determined the 16 teams that competed in the play-offs based on a set of criteria.[29] Teams in bold advanced to the play-offs.

League A
RankTeam
GW  Portugal
GW  Netherlands[H]
GW  England[H]
GW   Switzerland
5  Belgium
6  France
7  Spain[H]
8  Italy[H]
9  Croatia
10  Poland
11  Germany[H]
12  Iceland
League B
RankTeam
13 GW  Bosnia and Herzegovina
14 GW  Ukraine
15 GW  Denmark[H]
16 GW  Sweden
17  Russia[H]
18  Austria
19  Wales
20  Czech Republic
21  Slovakia
22  Turkey
23  Republic of Ireland[H]
24  Northern Ireland
League C
RankTeam
25 GW  Scotland[H]
26 GW  Norway
27 GW  Serbia
28 GW  Finland
29  Bulgaria
30  Israel
31  Hungary[H]
32  Romania[H]
33  Greece
34  Albania
35  Montenegro
36  Cyprus
37  Estonia
38  Slovenia
39  Lithuania
League D
RankTeam
40 GW  Georgia
41 GW  North Macedonia
42 GW  Kosovo
43 GW  Belarus
44  Luxembourg
45  Armenia
46  Azerbaijan[H]
47  Kazakhstan
48  Moldova
49  Gibraltar
50  Faroe Islands
51  Latvia
52  Liechtenstein
53  Andorra
54  Malta
55  San Marino

Key

Notes

References

External links