EURO 2020 qualifying campaign in drawing to a close with England among those to gain direct entry.
The Three Lions cruised through their group, win all but one match to reach next summer’s tournament at a canter.
Republic of Ireland must now battle through the play-offs to reach Euro 2020 after their draw to Denmark was not enough to earn qualificationCredit: Reuters
But there are still four places that need to be filled via the play-offs, which have left many confused.
With the added complications of more than one host country and the inclusion of the Nations League, here’s a breakdown of just how it all works.
Who has already qualified?
In each of the ten groups in qualifying, the top two nations have progressed – with just one place left to fill on Tuesday.
Those already through are as follows:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- England
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- Holland
- Poland
- Portugal
- Russia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- Ukraine
How do the play-offs work?
While many of the top countries easing into Euro 2020 without breaking a sweat, the play-offs allow those just missing out another shot.
Twenty teams will qualifying automatically via their groups.
Yet, the Nations League – which debuted last year to replace non-competitive friendlies – will offer the final four remaining places to teams of varying levels, allowing the smaller sides the chance to reach a major tournament.
But how do teams actually reach the play-offs through this?
- Nations League was split into four pathways, ranging from A including the best teams, and D the minnows of Europe.
- The pathways were then split into four groups, with the winners of each guaranteed a play-off place
- These were:
- League A: Portugal, Holland, England, Switzerland
- League B: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden
- League C: Scotland, Norway, Serbia, Finland
- League D: Georgia, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Belarus
- Each League is allocated one Euro 2020 spot, with those teams facing each other in a play-off
- Should a nation automatically progress through the qualifying campaign, their place is handed to the next best ranked team overall
- Only one team – Iceland – failed to qualify directly from League A, while a maximum of five teams from B will need play-offs to reach next summer’s tournament
- If League B has only four play-off teams, League C sides will be pushed up to help fill those places in the top tier, with only group winners ensured of remaining in their own pathway
- Currently, each League’s play-offs look like this at the moment:
- League A: Iceland
- League B: Bosnia and Herzegovina
- League C: Scotland, Norway, Serbia
- League D: Georgia, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Belarus
- As things stand, Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland have earned a play off place in League B, while Bulgaria, Israel and Romania have a spot in League C at the moment.
- Two from Hungary (C), Wales (B) and Slovakia (B) will also be in the play-offs
- A draw to decide to fill any empty spots will be held on Friday, November 22
Who will play who?
The play-off matches for each League will be decided by the best ranked team playing the worst and second facing third among those allocated to each pathway.
For example, Scotland finished a Group Winners and the best ranked side in League C, so they will play the worst ranked nation allocated to that pathway.
The play-offs semi-finals so far are:
League A
- Iceland vs 4th ranked team
- 2nd ranked team vs 3rd ranked team
League B
- Bosnia and Herzegovina vs 4th ranked team
- 2nd ranked team vs 3rd ranked team
League C
- Scotland vs 4th ranked team
- Norway vs Serbia
League D
- Georgia vs Belarus
- North Macedonia vs Kosovo
The one-game play-off semi finals will take place on Thursday, March 26, 2020.
The finals will be held on Tuesday, March 31, 2020.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
