The 2024-25 Nations League explained
Four teams will be eligible to participate in the playoffs that will enter the World Cup through the National League.
They are the highest-ranked group champions and they are not in the top two in the World Cup qualifiers next year.
Since teams in the top league division are likely to qualify for the World Cup through the European Qualifications – and there are many teams in the second-tier teams, this provides additional incentives for teams across league B and C.
By completing the top of the B2 Group, England is very likely to win the World Cup playoff location, while B4 winner Wales faces the same situation.
Northern Ireland’s top C3 at least gave them a chance, but Scotland didn’t win the playoffs in the National League campaign.
The 12 teams that passed the second place in the National Cup qualifying round will be part of the four teams participating in the playoffs – with four seats in 2026.
The seeds of the World Cup qualified group will depend to a lot on FIFA world rankings, not on the results of the National League.
The exception is that the best seeds will rank first from the team, they rank in the top two in each league, plus the four top countries in the world rankings.
England ranked fourth in the world and third in Europe, meaning that despite not participating in the league.
