The UEFA Executive Committee, meeting today in Nyon (Switzerland), approved new formats both in the Nations League and in the qualifying phase for the Eurocup and the World Cup to make “more attractive and exciting” competitions in question, according to the statement given by the European body itself. The changes will take effect from September 2024.
As for the Nations League, after the completion of the four League A groups in November 2024, a new knockout round of quarterfinals will take place, roundtrip, to be played in March 2025. It will be accessible first in each group and the winners will participate in the Final Four as played until now.
The third place in League A and the second place in League B, as well as the third place in League B and the second place in League C will play a round trip promotion/relegation playoff.
most competitive group
For its part, the qualifying phase for the Eurocup or the World Cup will be extended to 12 groups of four or five teams. The first in each league will qualify directly, while the second will either do so or have to play a playoff. With this change, UEFA aims to limit the number of matches and promote competitiveness. The final stage of the Eurocup will maintain a quota of 24 participants.
UEFA clarified that these arrangements will not increase the number of matches and that they were adopted after an extensive consultation process with national federations to “offer a more attractive and exciting competitions within the existing dates, as well as to strengthen the resources of the national federation and ensure continuous recovery from the impact of the pandemic.”
Ceferin’s arguments
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin justified the changes: “The introduction of the UEFA Nations League was a success story, replacing friendly matches with more competitive matches. And now, with the introduction of a new phase of the knockout, the national teams they will have more opportunities to progress as long as the same number of matches are kept within the International Match Schedule.”
Regarding the new format of the qualifying phase of the European Championships and the World Cup, Ceferin considers that “it presents all teams with the same opportunities to qualify for major tournaments and promises to bring more excitement” in the aforementioned competitions.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
