2026/27 UEFA Nations League: Games to look out for

Cross-border rivalries will be renewed and there will be a rematch of the UEFA EURO 2024 final in the league phase of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League.

We check out some of the most eye-catching fixtures following the draw on 12 February.

Group A2: Netherlands vs Germany, 24/09

The first clutch of games on the first night of the competition includes this age-old classic, and Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman knows it is one that will fire up players and fans on both sides of the neighbours' border. "Those are always fantastic matches," he said. "They're games we sometimes lose, but we've certainly won too, like in the first edition of the Nations League [in 2018, when the Dutch beat their neighbours 3-0 in Amsterdam]. It's always great to play against Germany."

Germany are unbeaten in the sides' last four encounters (W2 D2), and coach Julian Nagelsmann (who was in charge for three of those fixtures) told UEFA: "We've already played the Netherlands; they have a lot of good players." With trips to Serbia and Greece awaiting both sides in the section, a positive start will be a big target.

Group A3: England vs Spain, 26/09

Matchday 1 serves up a second monster tie, with the sides that met in the final of UEFA EURO 2024 reconvening at Wembley. Luis de la Fuente's youthful side were good value for that 2-1 success in Berlin, and (as runners-up last time out) Spain are once more targeting glory in the Nations League. "It's a competition where there are great expectations and hopes," De la Fuente told UEFA. "But it's very tough."

He may find out exactly how tough as his side take on Thomas Tuchel's England. Back in League A after winning promotion in the 2024/25 edition, the Three Lions have got what their coach was hoping for. "We wanted a competitive group," Tuchel told UEFA. "We want to play against the best and see where we are." In ten meetings since the turn of the millennium, England's record against Spain is W3 D1 L6. Will their new coach help to redress that negative balance?

Group A1: Belgium vs France, 28/09

Group A 1 features Italy and Türkiye as well as neighbours Belgium and France, and promises thrills from start to finish. The only regret for France boss Didier Deschamps is that he will miss the games, since he is set to retire after the World Cup finals. "We had the privilege of winning the 2021 edition with France," he told UEFA. "I wish the same for the French team again."

Deschamps' successor will need to hit the ground running, and Les Bleus will be up against a coach who knows them inside out, Belgium's French boss Rudi Garcia having seen plenty of the current team close-up during spells in charge of Lille, Marseille and Lyon. When he took charge of Belgium, the ex-Roma and Napoli boss said: "It's not about trying, it's about doing; that is my motto." He delivered in taking the Red Devils to the World Cup. Can he deliver again here?

Group A1: Italy vs France, 12/11

If Deschamps' replacement faces a tough first task in taking on Belgium, this Matchday 5 away game against France's neighbours from the south east will be no less of a test. The sides were paired in the 2024/25 Nations League, the Azzurri prevailing 3-1 away before a 3-1 home loss at San Siro extended a bizarre run of results. Italy have not won a home game against their neighbours (D2 L4) since a 2-1 friendly success in May 1962. José Altafini (now 87) was the last player to score an Azzurri home winner against France.

Ahead of the Nations League campaign, France had won four of their most recent five games against Italy, but if the results have not gone Italy's way, performances have perhaps been better than they looked on paper. After that most recent 3-1 home defeat, midfielder Nicolò Barella said "we take [positives from] the performance and the fact that France respected us". Another good performance (and a better result) could mean the class of 2026 finally scratch a 64-year itch.

Worth looking out for

• With 19 goals, Erling Haaland is four clear at the top of the competition's all-time top scorer rankings. Promoted to League A in the last edition with Norway, he will look to keep scoring against Portugal, Denmark and Wales.
• Viktor Gyökeres was the top scorer in the 2024/25 edition of the Nations League as his Sweden side earned promotion from League C. Will the Arsenal man's goals help them make the step up to League A this time?
• The Faroe Islands will look to more than hold their own against Kazakhstan, Slovakia and Moldova in Group C3. Having avoided the drop in 2024/25, they took an impressive 12 points in the European Qualifiers for the World Cup.