Nations Cup

[Ozymandias]

Forgive my stupidity, but is the Nations Cup the European Nations? If it is, what a daft format.
I go away on holiday and come home to the news that Spain had beaten us in it and there was no furore about the defeat and the calling for Southgate's head.
Three games on and still looking like we are not going to qualify for anything beyond this group section, unless of course it's the top three Nations that qualify.
And if it took three years for Sterling to get on the scoresheet?? Thank goodness he wasn't playing for Dartford. We would have been baying for his head three games into the season.
Can someone please let me know.

[Bacton Buoy]

It's an extra "tournament" to be played every two years. There is promotion and relegation to/from the various leagues.

"According to the approved format the now 55 UEFA national teams will be divided into four divisions (called "Leagues"): 12 teams in League A, 12 teams in League B, 15 teams in League C, and 16 teams in League D. In each league, four groups are formed (three or four teams in each group) and play each other both home and away.

In the top league, League A, the winners of the four groups go on to play in the Nations League Finals, with two semi finals and one final to decide which team becomes the UEFA Nations League champion.

Teams can also be promoted and relegated to a higher or lower league. Each group winner (there are four groups in each league) is automatically promoted to the next higher league for the next tournament. Each team placing last in its group is automatically relegated to the next lower league. "

If you can understand that, well done!

[Llamaman]

At first sight it does look a bit of a dogs dinner, but after looking a bit deeper it is actually not a bad idea. It is an attempt to cut down on the number of meaningless international friendlies in non-competition qualifying years. It will make the qualifying competitions for the Euros & The World Cup more compact and is also seen as a way for the minnow nations to actually win something and gradually improve. The idea has already caught the eye of South America where a similar competition is being given serious consideration.
If you think the actual competition is a bit on the complicated side try sorting out the tv rights.

[silverado]

If you've been watching ITV's hghlights programmes, you'll have heard they can't show hghlights from the previous night's matches "for contractual reasons".

[Bacton Buoy]

At first sight it does look a bit of a dogs dinner, but after looking a bit deeper it is actually not a bad idea. It is an attempt to cut down on the number of meaningless international friendlies in non-competition qualifying years. It will make the qualifying competitions for the Euros & The World Cup more compact and is also seen as a way for the minnow nations to actually win something and gradually improve. The idea has already caught the eye of South America where a similar competition is being given serious consideration.
If you think the actual competition is a bit on the complicated side try sorting out the tv rights.

I thought it looked a bit of a dog's dinner but after looking a bit deeper I realised that I wouldn't give anything that bad to my dog. The idea was to replace meaningless friendlies with more competitive games. Now we just have a meaningless tournament that no one is interested in. We still need friendlies to get the experience of playing against non european teams. It does give a chance to minnows like us to actually win something though.

[Ozymandias]

Thanks for that lads. Another load of bollocks then. I was going to ask another question, but I just couldn't be bothered.
And there was me thinking we'd slipped up against Spain in the European Nations Finals qualification group and thinking 'I can't remember the draw taking place'.
So when we play Croatia at Wembley I won't get too upset if we lose, and to think Sterling found his goal-scoring boots for what is pretty well 'a friendly'.

[Bacton Buoy]

Another load of bollocks then.

Sums it up pretty well.

[Llamaman]

No one interested in it, well I am. Far better and more useful than those friendlies where the teams that finish the game bare scant resemblance to those that started. From interviews the coaches seem to prefer it, and anyway there are still gaps in the calendar for matches against teams from other parts of the world or to ease new players in. There is one next month and dates are available next spring and maybe next summer if England are free.

[Bacton Buoy]

Slightly better than the friendlies, yes, but personally, I wasn't interested in them either.