England will play holders Spain in the second edition of the Women’s Nations League, with the Lionesses set to face the world champions twice before next summer’s Euro 2025 in rematches of last year’s World Cup final.
The Lionesses will also play Belgium and Portugal in League A as Sarina Wiegman’s side build up to their European Championship defence in Switzerland next summer. The fixtures will be played in double-headers across February, April and May/June.
England avoided Scotland and Wales, who return to League A. Scotland were handed a tough group alongside Germany, the Netherlands and Austria while Wales will play Italy, Denmark and Sweden Follow updates from the Women’s Nations League draw, below
Women’s Nations League draw: Latest updates
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Draw for second edition of Women’s Nations League
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England draw world champions Spain in Women’s Nations League
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England in League A, along with Wales and Scotland
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Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland in League B
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League A pots and seedings ahead of Nations League draw
Women’s Nations League fixture dates
12:46 , Jamie Braidwood
The Women’s Nations League will played across these dates. England and Spain could theoretically meet less than a month before the start of Euro 2025.
Matchdays 1 & 2: Between 19 and 26 February 2025Matchdays 3 & 4: Between 2 and 8 April 2025Matchdays 5 & 6: Between 28 May and 3 June 2025
Women’s Nations League: Scotland and Wales avoid England
12:39 , Jamie Braidwood
That’s a tough group for Scotland, drawing both Germany and the Netherlands as well as Austria.
Wales have also drawn some big-hitters. They got Italy, the more favourable top-seeded opponent, but have tough matches to come against Denmark and Sweden.
Women’s Nations League: League A draw in full
12:38 , Jamie Braidwood
A1: Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Scotland
A2: France, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland
A3: Spain, England, Belgium, Portugal
A4: Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Wales
Women’s Nations League: League A draw
12:38 , Jamie Braidwood
Finally, England will play PORTUGAL. They were probably the toughest of the teams in Pot 4.
Another tricky group for the Lionesses, with some good tests to come.
Women’s Nations League: League A draw
12:37 , Jamie Braidwood
Belgium join England and Spain in A3. The Lionesses also faced Belgium in their previous Nations League campaign, losing away.
A1: Germany, Netherlands, Austria,
A2: France, Iceland, Norway
A3: Spain, England, Belgium,
A4: Italy, Denmark, Sweden
Women’s Nations League: League A draw
12:34 , Jamie Braidwood
England will face SPAIN in Nations League Group A3! The Lionesses will play the world champions twice before Euro 2025, in a rematch of the World Cup final.
A1: Germany, Netherlands
A2: France, Iceland
A3: Spain, England
A4: Italy, Denmark
Women’s Nations League: League A draw up next
12:32 , Jamie Braidwood
Time for League A, starting with the top seeds:
A1: Germany
A2: France
A3: Spain
A4: Italy
Women’s Nations League: League B draw in full
12:29 , Jamie Braidwood
B1: Poland, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania
B2: Republic of Ireland, Turkiye, Slovenia, Greece
B3: Finland, Serbia, Hungary, Belarus
B4: Czechia, Ukraine, Croatia, Albania
Women’s Nations League: League C draw in full
12:25 , Jamie Braidwood
C1: Slovakia, Faroe Islands, Moldova, Gibraltar
C2: Malta, Georgia, Cyprus, Andorra
C3: Luxembourg, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
C4: Azerbaijan, Montenegro, Lithuania
C5: Israel, Bulgaria, Estonia,
C6: Kosovo, Latvia, North Macedonia
Fara Williams to help with Women’s Nations League draw
12:12 , Jamie Braidwood
Fara Williams, England’s all-time record appearance holder with 172 caps, will help conduct the draw. Williams represented the Lionesses at three World Cups and four Euros.
Women’s Nations League draw order
12:02 , Jamie Braidwood
The draw starts with League C, followed by League B and League A.
Women’s Nations League results will impact World Cup qualifying
12:00 , Jamie Braidwood
It seems a long, long way away, but the Nations League draw could have an impact on qualifying for the Women’s World Cup in 2027.
The results of the Nations League and final standings will determine seeding for the World Cup qualifying rounds, which will mirror the Nations League.
This is important for England, Scotland and Wales, as they will want to ensure they remain in League A and have access to the automatic qualification places.
England seeded in pot 2 because of Euro 2025 qualifying results
11:50 , Jamie Braidwood
The Lionesses qualified automatically for next summer’s Euro 2025 in Switzerland but finished second to France in their group, which is why they are seeded in pot 2 of today’s draw.
Changes to qualifying meant England basically played a Nations League campaign towards the end of last season, too, with games against France, Sweden and the Republic of Ireland.
How did England fare in their first Nations League appearance?
11:40 , Jamie Braidwood
After reaching the Women’s World Cup final, the Lionesses struggled in the Nations League with defeats to Netherlands and Belgium away from home last autumn.
Despite beating the Netherlands and Scotland in their final two matches – coming from 2-0 down to beat the Dutch 3-2 at Wembley and then scoring six against the Scots at Hampden – Sarina Wiegman’s side finished second in their group and were unable to qualify for the Olympics.
How about the Nations League finals?
11:29 , Jamie Braidwood
The four League A group winners qualify for the knockout finals.
In a change from the first edition, all the ties will be played over two legs. There remains two semi-finals, a third-place play-off and a final. A draw will determine the ties and the home team in each of the first legs.
The final winners are declared the UEFA Nations League winners.
Nations League finals dates
Semi-finals (two legs): Between 22 and 28 October 2025 Final/third-place play-off (two legs): Between 26 November and 2 December 2025
How does the Nations League work?
11:22 , Jamie Braidwood
The top two teams in each group remain in League A for the European Qualifiers for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The four third-placed teams play off over two legs against against the second-placed teams in each group of League B. The winner of each match play in League A for the European Qualifiers phase; the defeated teams will play in League B.
The fourth-placed teams are relegated to League B.
When will the Nations League matches be played?
11:15 , Jamie Braidwood
Matchdays 1 & 2: Between 19 and 26 February 2025Matchdays 3 & 4: Between 2 and 8 April 2025Matchdays 5 & 6: Between 28 May and 3 June 2025
Euro 2025 starts in Switzerland on 2 July. The Women’s Champions League final is on 25 May.
Nations League: League A pots
11:08 , Jamie Braidwood
League A
Pot 1
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Spain (holders)
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Germany
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France
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Italy
Pot 2
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Iceland
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Denmark
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England
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Netherlands
Pot 3
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Sweden
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Norway
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Austria
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Belgium
Pot 4
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Portugal
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Scotland
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Switzerland
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Wales
Nations League: League B pots
11:06 , Jamie Braidwood
League B
Pot 1
Finland
Czechia
Republic of Ireland
Poland
Pot 2
Serbia
Ukraine
Northern Ireland
Türkiye
Pot 3
Croatia
Hungary
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Slovenia
Pot 4
Romania
Belarus
Greece
Albania
Nations League: League C pots
11:03 , Jamie Braidwood
League C
Pot 1
Slovakia
Azerbaijan
Malta
Israel
Kosovo
Pot 2
Luxembourg
Montenegro
Georgia
Bulgaria
Latvia
Pot 3
Faroe Islands
Armenia
North Macedonia
Estonia
Lithuania
Pot 4
Kazakhstan
Moldova
Cyprus
Andorra
Gibraltar
Liechtenstein
Good morning
11:00 , Jamie Braidwood
The draw for the second edition of the Women’s Nations League is at 12pm today, with England, Scotland and Wales among those in League A.
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