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The UEFA Nations League: On this special extra podcast we take a look at the UEFA Nations League and look at some of the language involved with this tournament and answer questions about the format, the rules and what it may mean for the future of European football internationals. If you have questions or comments, email us at: admin@languagecaster.com (Damian=DF, Damon=DB).
Transcript of the show (11th September 2018)
Learn English through Football Podcast: The UEFA Nations League
DF: You are listening to languagecaster.com’s football-language podcast. Welcome everyone to the podcast for all those interested in improving their English skills and who love the beautiful game of football. My name is Damian and I’m in a very sunny and warm Malaga in the south of Spain and am currently enjoying the new UEFA Nations League competition – the Spanish fans here are very happy with this competition so far! As this is a new tournament we thought we’d do an extra podcast that looks at some of the language involved with it and also answers a few questions about the format, the rules and what it may mean for the future of European football internationals.
- What is it?
- How is it organised?
- Is there promotion and relegation?
- How is it connected to the European Championship finals?
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (in Irish)
UEFA Nations League: What is it?
DF: Many coaches, pundits and fans were unhappy with the system of playing international friendlies as there was nothing really to play for – there lacked a competitive edge with these games often called ‘meaningless friendlies’. National team managers often picked weakened sides or made lots of changes in the game with six, or more, substitutions allowed. So, UEFA, the European governing body of football, decided to add some form of competition to these friendlies and came up with the idea of the UEFA Nations League which has just started for the first time in autumn 2018 and will take place every two years.
How is it organised?
DF: There are 55 countries taking part in the tournament and these have been divided into four main leagues or divisions: 12 teams in League A, 12 teams in League B, 15 teams in League C and 16 teams in League D. Each of these leagues are further divided into four more sections or groups. Sometimes, for example in Leagues A and B, there are three teams in each of the four groups (see below), while in League C there are three groups of four and one of three and in League D there are four groups of four teams.
League A
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 |
| France | Switzerland | Portugal | Spain |
| Germany | Belgium | Poland | England |
| Netherlands | Iceland | Italy | Croatia |
Each team plays home and away against the other teams with the winner of each of the four groups going into a play-off. In June 2019, the four winners in League A (the top group) play off in two semi-finals and then a final with the winner becoming the UEFA Nations League champion.
Is there promotion and relegation?
Yes. Teams can move up and down between the leagues so each team that finishes first in their group will automatically be promoted to the next league. So, for example, if Denmark wins League B Group 4 then it will be promoted to League A, while if England finish bottom of League A Group 4 they will be relegated to League B. This happens throughout the four leagues with four teams promoted and four teams relegated each time.
How is it connected to the European Championship finals?
We’ve already mentioned that the top four sides in League A will play-off to decide which team becomes the UEFA Nations League winner but there are other play-offs that will take place the following spring – in March 2020 – and this set of play-offs will decide four places at the 2020 European Championship finals. The qualifiers for this tournament – Euro 2020 – will take place between March and November in 2019 and will comprise ten groups. The top two sides in each group will classify or qualify for the finals, so that makes 20 teams. The remaining four spots, or places, will go to teams who win their respective play-offs from the UEFA Nations League. Remember that a side can be promoted if it wins the group and so if this team has not already qualified for the Euro finals then it will go into the play-offs to try and win one of the remaining four spots. This means that at least one team from the weaker leagues (C and D) will make it through to the finals so there is a good chance we will see a country making its debut – maybe Luxembourg, Malta or the Faroe Islands from League D.
There are other rules involving the play-offs but this is a basic overview of the competition. No doubt there will be complaints about such things as the complexity of the competition, the fact that players will not have a break between major tournaments and that minnows or weaker sides will win a place at the Euros but the promise of more competitive matches rather than meaningless friendlies means football fans should be much happier.
Goodbye
Thank you for listening, remember that you can download the transcript and a worksheet (with answers) on our Patreon site for this listening report and of course we’ll be back soon with another football-language podcast. Bye bye.
Further Information
Check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and don’t forget to join our Premier League predictions competition. If you have any suggestions or questions, contact us
Learn English Through Football Podcast: A show for football fans to improve their English language skills
