England to Compete Against Spain in Women’s Nations League

The 2025 Women’s Nations League draw has placed England in the same group as Spain, the current world champions. Spain secured their inaugural major women’s trophy by overcoming England in the 2023 Women’s World Cup final. Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses experienced a 1-0 loss to Spain in the 2023 Women’s World Cup final. Furthermore, Spain currently holds the title of Nations League champions. Belgium and Portugal will also compete in League A Group A3 alongside these two teams. In League A Group A1, Scotland will compete against Germany, who were finalists in Euro 2022, as well as the Netherlands and Austria. Within League A, Group A4 includes Wales, Italy, Denmark, and Sweden. Northern Ireland is set to play against Poland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Romania in League B Group B1. The group stage matches are scheduled from February to June. This precedes Euro 2025, which commences in Switzerland on 2 July, with England entering as the defending champions. The competition’s structure mirrors that of the men’s event, featuring 53 participating teams distributed across three leagues. The four winners from League A groups will advance to the semi-finals, which will then be followed by a third-place play-off and the final match. These knockout fixtures will be contested over two legs, marking a modification from the inaugural edition of the Nations League. Teams finishing fourth in each League A group will face relegation, while the winners of the League B groups will be promoted to take their places. Within League B, every fourth-placed team will be relegated, alongside the two third-placed teams with the lowest rankings. All six group winners from League C will be promoted. The Nations League will additionally influence the qualification process for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, scheduled to be held in Brazil. The top two teams from each group will retain their position in League A for the European qualifiers leading to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The four third-placed teams from League A are slated to compete against the second-placed teams from League B, with the victors participating in League A for the World Cup qualifying phase. For League B, the two highest-ranked third-placed teams will engage in play-offs against the two best-ranked second-placed teams from League C, and the winners will proceed to play in League B for the World Cup qualifying phase. Matchdays one and two are scheduled for 19-26 February. Matchday three and four will occur from 2-8 April. Matchday five and six are set for 28 May-3 June. The semi-finals, contested over two legs, will take place between 22-28 October. The final and third-place play-off, both featuring two legs, are scheduled for 26 November – 2 December. Group A1 consists of Germany, Netherlands, Austria, and Scotland. Group A2 comprises France, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland. Group A3 includes Spain, England, Belgium, and Portugal. Group A4 features Italy, Denmark, Sweden, and Wales. Group B1 is made up of Poland, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Romania. Group B2 contains the Republic of Ireland, Turkey, Slovenia, and Greece. Group B3 comprises Finland, Serbia, Hungary, and Belarus. Group B4 includes the Czech Republic, Ukraine, Croatia, and Albania. Group C1 consists of Slovakia, Faroe Islands, Moldova, and Gibraltar. Group C2 is made up of Malta, Georgia, Cyprus, and Andorra. Group C3 comprises Luxembourg, Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Liechtenstein. Group C4 includes Azerbaijan, Montenegro, and Lithuania. Group C5 features Israel, Bulgaria, and Estonia. Group C6 consists of Kosovo, Latvia, and North Macedonia.