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UEFA Nations League


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On 10/12/2017 at 22:06, DAVIDB69 said:

Everyone seems confident but aren't we still going to end in a group with a lot of the same teams we always get. Although Scotland, Serbia, Montenegro, Lithuania would not fill me with confidence

 

Serbia and Montenegro will get kicked out for fighting each other surely?

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35 minutes ago, Donathan said:

 


Didn’t they split apart about a decade ago?

 

After the disintegration of Yugoslavia the other constituents became independent to one degree or another. However, those two continued and formed a new version of Yugoslavia. After a few years they separated in to two separate countries. This was done democratically, there was no conflict between them.

Given your recent Slovenia/Slovakia gaffe, have you really never heard of any of this? The break up of the Eastern Bloc was quite a big thing.

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Sportsound on just now and, as predicted, they're hooting with laughter about how complicated it is.
Then, cherry on the cake, Gary Naysmith and a few others were astonished to learn you can actually qualify for Euro 2020 through it.

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Just now, Gordopolis said:

Sportsound on just now and, as predicted, they're hooting with laughter about how complicated it is.
Then, cherry on the cake, Gary Naysmith and a few others were astonished to learn you can actually qualify for Euro 2020 through it.

Dougsy will be outside, waiting with a contract offer to run the Scottish game.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Jings...




https://apnews.com/8ccc78b4e34f47b2ae989e7c247245de/Column:-Global-league-can-revive-stale-international-soccer

Global league can revive stale international soccer

Disappointed the World Cup comes around only every four years? Find the early games tedious? Just want to see the elite teams contesting a final competition?

Once fans get their heads around a complex format, the proposed Global Nations League could be just the event to revive international soccer.

Out go most irrelevant friendlies. In come more meaningful fixtures with silverware at stake. Even smaller countries get a chance to pick up a trophy.

Be clear: The World Cup is going nowhere, especially as FIFA expands its showpiece from 32 to 48 teams from 2026. But if the Global Nations League is to see the light of day, one big fixture will first have to be won between two heavyweights of the game: FIFA and UEFA.

Muscling in on shaping the global game, UEFA has conceived a new competition that features finals every two years in odd numbered years. So for European teams, when there isn't a World Cup or European Championship, there could be a trip to the Global Nations League finals in June.

But while UEFA is calling it the Global Nations League, the structure of the competition is far more complicated — a potential barrier to attracting fans and commercial backers. In the final stage, there is not even one league but seven, each featuring eight teams. And it isn't even a league, but effectively mini-World Cups that start in the quarterfinals.

A host nation would be required for each of the seven finals tournaments.

The top tier would feature the cream of soccer, each playing seven matches, and should prove more alluring to broadcasters than friendlies. What demand, though, would there be to televise games from division seven including far less appealing teams?

It will be left to each of the six confederations to decide how teams will qualify for the mini-World Cups, and that is where the configuration scrambles the brain even more. Europe plans to adapt the convoluted Nations League that is already due to debut in 2018 to occupy many existing gaps set aside for friendlies.

The disputes will inevitably come over the composition of each of the final seven leagues. UEFA envisages division one featuring three of its own, the two winners of the South African qualifying groups plus the top team from North America, Africa, and Asia. Oceania, whose highest-ranked member is New Zealand, doesn't even make the cut until GNL4.

The underlying message from UEFA leaders as they briefed global soccer officials in recent weeks is that the workload on players will not significantly increase as the GNL does not significantly add to the burden on national teams. That could win over the powerful European Club Association.

The little-regarded eight-nation Confederations Cup, used as a preparation event a year before the World Cup, is already set for the scrapheap. That frees up a space in the international calendar in June 2021, one FIFA already has its own plans to fill.

FIFA will not want to risk the World Cup being devalued by introducing a new competition for international teams. What FIFA seems to want is a bigger slice of the club game dominated by UEFA, especially as the privately run International Champions Trophy contested by leading European clubs in preseason across the globe gains traction.

The annual Club World Cup organized by FIFA is unloved and largely ignored every December beyond the participants (the six confederation club champions and the host nation's league winner).

FIFA believes a more desirable product can be grown if the tournament is quadrupled to 24 teams and played every four years but opposition is gathering. European officials are complaining about players being overworked at the end of a grueling season. It's a different problem for teams from the Americas. The proposed 18-day Club World Cup in June would take them away from their domestic competitions for several weeks and lead to a fixture backlog to catch up on.

The Global Nations League is far less disruptive. Finalists would play only one additional game in the existing June window reserved for two international fixtures.

Will June 2021 see a refreshed club competition or new international series?

FIFA President Gianni Infantino seems to be pitched directly against his former paymasters in Europe over who determines the future of soccer.

The international game between existing major tournaments needs rejuvenating. The Global Nations League seems the best solution on the table.   

 




FIFA considering replacing International Friendlies with new 'WORLD LEAGUE'
https://www.si.com/soccer/2017/10/29/fifa-considering-replacing-international-friendlies-new-world-league

UEFA-led plan for 'Global Nations League' soccer competition every 2 years
https://apnews.com/d2e221fec9854489aeb55a0ce914d215?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=AP_Sports

FIFA and confederations look at expanding UEFA's Nations League
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-soccer-fifa-nationsleague/fifa-and-confederations-look-at-expanding-uefas-nations-league-idUSKBN1D40HV

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  • 1 month later...

The pots were confirmed last week and the draw will be held on 24 January. https://www.uefa.com/uefanationsleague/news/newsid=2522564.html#/

 

League C pots are:

Pot 1 - Hungary, Romania, Scotland, Slovenia

Pot 2 - Greece, Serbia, Albania, Norway

Pot 3 - Montenegro, Israel, Bulgaria, Finland

Pot 4 - Cyprus, Estonia, Lithuania

Additional quirk of the draw is that no more than two of Norway, Finland, Estonia & Lithuania can be drawn in the same group, apparently so they can avoid any of them playing home games in November. It's a bit weird considering it isn't an issue for UEFA for clubs from those countries play home European ties in November/December, but whatever.

Absolute certainty that we'll get Lithuania for the millionth time.

 

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There is absolutely no reason - apart from completely ruining it for ourselves - that we can't win any combination of group those pots spew out.  Some tough teams definitely, but given draws almost always involve getting at least 2 sides well out of our league, this is a big opportunity.

I'd say it's more guaranteed we'll avoid pot 4 entirely and get drawn into the 3-team group.  Anything to give the SFA an opportunity to avoid playing a friendly.  Albania/Norway and Finland the best draw?  Add in Estonia if we're in a 4.

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52 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said:

Additional quirk of the draw is that no more than two of Norway, Finland, Estonia & Lithuania can be drawn in the same group, apparently so they can avoid any of them playing home games in November. It's a bit weird considering it isn't an issue for UEFA for clubs from those countries play home European ties in November/December, but whatever.

Absolute certainty that we'll get Lithuania for the millionth time.

Indeed.

So they'll finish AA meaning others will finish HH?

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1 minute ago, HibeeJibee said:

So they'll finish AA meaning others will finish HH?

They've not explicitly said that but it looks like it: it's the only logical way to interpret their official wording on keeping them apart which is "Due to winter venue restrictions, a group can contain a maximum of two of these teams." What else could that mean in the context of keeping them apart?

The League D restrictions on teams being drawn together will cause a headache.

Quote

 

Due to a decision of the UEFA Executive Committee, Armenia and Azerbaijan cannot be draw in the same group.

Due to excessive travel restrictions, any group can contain a maximum of one of these pairs: Andorra & Kazakhstan, Faroe Islands & Kazakhstan, Gibraltar & Kazakhstan, Gibraltar & Azerbaijan

 

 

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This all seems excessive.

Such conditions about November weather, geographic extremity*, etc. etc. have never been adopted in proper qualifying.

*plus what about potential Division B match-ups... Russia/Ukraine/Turkey <> Northern Ireland/Eire/Wales

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2 hours ago, Bully Wee Villa said:

Looks like the geographical rule has been brought in to save a massive expense for the tiny countries with not much money. Seems fair enough.

They make huge sums out of centralised TV deals though - if you look at the figures which Gibraltar make it's mind-boggling in comparison to the size of the territory and the scale and level of football. Also UEFA could announce they'd pay everyone air fares and it'd be a drop in the ocean of their distributions.

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Maybe, but I don't think UEFA like giving away money. May also be an issue as, I assume, the likes of Gibraltar will be mostly amateur/part-time so it makes sense not to make them have to travel too far so as to minimise the amount of time they need go take off work.

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