Milan, Feb 9 (LaPresse) – Awaiting their return to the field on March 26 in Bergamo for the World Cup playoff semifinal against Northern Ireland, Italy will learn their opponents for the 2026/27 Nations League group stage on Thursday, February 12 (6:00 PM) in Brussels. The draw, scheduled at Brussels Expo Hall 3 – which in the morning will host the 50th edition of the UEFA Ordinary Congress – will be attended by FIGC President Gabriele Gravina, Secretary General Marco Brunelli, and Leonardo Bonucci, assistant to National Team coach Gennaro Gattuso.
The Azzurri, who reached the quarterfinals in the previous edition, will again compete in League A and will enter the draw in the second pot alongside the Netherlands, Denmark, and Croatia. The four top-seeded teams will be the reigning champions Portugal, Spain, France, and Germany. The sixteen participating nations will be drawn into four groups of four teams each. Every team will play six matches – three at home and three away – against the other three teams in their group. The top two teams in each group will advance to the quarterfinals; the fourth-place team will be relegated to League B, while the third-place team will play a playoff to stay in League A against one of the second-placed teams from League B.
The group stage will begin at the end of September 2026 and conclude in November, with the quarterfinals and playoffs scheduled for March 2027. The tournament’s final phase will be held in June 2027.
League A pots:
Pot 1: Portugal, Spain, France, Germany
Pot 2: Italy, Netherlands, Denmark, Croatia
Pot 3: Serbia, Belgium, England, Norway
Pot 4: Wales, Czech Republic, Greece, Turkey