Spain’s national-team camp opens on Tuesday with one eye on the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League and another on a competition already set to reshape itself two years later. The results from the edition beginning now, with matches due to start in March 2027, will establish the divisional map for the 2028-29 tournament.
Key takeaways
- UEFA has informed its member federations of the revised structure planned for the 2028-29 Nations League.
- Spain begin their gathering on Tuesday ahead of the 2026-27 qualifying phase.
- The next competition’s overall ranking will determine places across Leagues A, B and C.
- League A will include the teams placed first to 18th in the general Nations League ranking.
- Promotion and relegation play-offs between the divisions will be decisive in filling the future leagues.
A ranking shaped by March 2027
The road towards the new 2028-29 format begins with fixtures in March 2027. UEFA will use the outcome of League A quarter-finals, together with promotion-relegation ties between Leagues A and B and between Leagues C and D, to build the following edition’s divisions.
League A is intended to cover positions one through 18 in the overall ranking. Eight sides will reach the quarter-finals, while the two highest-ranked third-placed teams in League A will also be part of the equation.
The top division will additionally be completed by the four League B group winners and the four teams that prevail in the League A-League B play-offs. For Spain, the present campaign therefore carries significance beyond the immediate Nations League schedule: every result will help define the level at which sides begin the next cycle.
How Leagues B and C will be filled
League B will be formed from teams ranked 19th to 36th overall. Its composition includes the two lowest fourth-placed finishers from League A, the four sides beaten in the A-B play-offs and four teams that finish third in League B.
Those places will be supplemented by the four League C group winners and the four winners of the League B-League C promotion-relegation ties.
League C, meanwhile, will contain the teams placed from 37th to 54th in the overall standings. It will include the four losers of the B-C play-offs, eight sides finishing third or fourth in League C, and six teams coming from League D.
