In a FIFA World Cup year, what do football fans normally do in June? With no leagues and cups, they shift loyalties back to national teams and watch the finest talents fight for the biggest trophy in the world. This summer, however, there will be no World Cup with the 2022 edition starting as late as November 21. But don't get disheartened just yet. UEFA's own Nations League is here to fill the void created by Qatar's winter World Cup, at least up to some extent. (More Football News)
Players to look out for
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Robert Lewandowski (Poland), Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema (France), Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard, Thibaut Courtois, (Belgium), Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Harry Kane (England), Frenkie De Jong (Netherlands), Ferran Torres, Ansu Fati (Spain), Erling Haaland (Norway), Gareth Bale (Wales), Karim Adeyemi (Germany), etc.
Format
55 national teams will compete in the UEFA Nations League 2022-23. These teams are divided into four leagues -- League A, League B, League C, and League D. League A, B and C have 16 teams each while League D has seven. These groups are further split into groups -- four each for A, B, and C; and two for D (four and three).
Bottom-placed teams in League A and B will be relegated, while the team that finishes last in League C will enter a play-off to decide who drops to League D. 16 teams in League A are in contention for the UEFA Nations League title.
And the ranking is based on the previous UEFA Nations League performance.
Check the full schedule HERE.
The group stage follows traditional home-away fixtures, with each team playing the others in their group twice. Some of the popular venues to host the matches are -- San Siro in Milan for Italy, Allianz Arena in Munich for Germany, Wembley in London for England, Stade De France in Paris for France, Puskas Arena in Budapest for Hungary, Juventus Stadium in Turin for Italy, Hampden Park in Glasgow for Scotland, etc.
Teams and groups
League A
Group A1: France, Denmark, Croatia and Austria;
Group A2: Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Czech Republic;
Group A3: Italy, Germany, England and Hungary;
Group A4: Belgium, Netherlands, Poland and Wales.
The winners of each group in League A qualify for UEFA Nations League Finals, to be held from June 14 to 18 in 2023. There will be two venues, which are yet to be decided.
League B
Group B1: Ukraine, Scotland, Republic of Ireland and Armenia;
Group B2: Iceland, Israel, Albania, Russia (In May, the UEFA announced that Russia were suspended and automatically relegated to League C following their country's invasion of Ukraine);
Group B3: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Romania and Montenegro;
Group B4: Sweden, Norway, Serbia and Slovenia.
The winners of each group in League B, C and D secure promotion to the next league.
League C
Group C1: Turkey, Luxembourg, Lithuania and Faroe Islands;
Group C2: Northern Ireland, Greece, Kosovo and Cyprus;
Group C3: Slovakia, Belarus, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan;
Group C4: Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Georgia, Gibraltar
League D
Group D1: Liechtenstein, Moldova, Andorra, Latvia;
Group D2: Malta, Estonia and San Marino.
Match days
Matchday 1: June 1 to 4
Matchday 2: June 5 to 8
Matchday 3: June 9 to 11
Matchday 4: June 12 to 14
Matchday 5: September 22 to 24
Match 6: September 14 and 15.
How to watch Nations League 2022-23 football matches?
Select UEFA Nations League 2022-23 matches will be telecast live in India on Sony TEN 1/HD, Sony TEN 2/HD channels.
Live streaming of UEFA Nations League 2022-23 matches will be available on SonyLIV and JioTV.
For global TV listings, click HERE.
