00:00We've reached the international break, and the Israeli national team is going to play four games
00:03in the Nations League over the next two weeks. A lot of question marks have arisen around the
00:06Nations League, and many changes have also happened in the Nations League. I will try to explain them
00:10here in a clear, concise way, and if I succeed, be sure to hit like and subscribe to the channel.
00:14So, we'll start by saying that there are constantly many changes in the Nations League.
00:16Things keep getting updated, and this is current as of the recording of this video,
00:19specifically regarding Euro 2028. 54 national teams are playing in the Nations League across
00:2412 groups, and they will provide between two to four spots for Euro 2028, depending on several
00:30factors that I'd point out here and try to explain. Bear with me, because it gets a bit complicated.
00:35I will try to explain this as simply and clearly as possible, including of course the path of the
00:38Israeli national team, and explain what Israel needs to do, first to stay in its tier or advance
00:42to the next one, or second of course to secure a spot at Euro 2028, outside of the regular qualifiers.
00:47But it's important to clarify, the Nations League is a lifeline for teams that fail to qualify through
00:51the regular qualifiers. If we want to qualify for Euro 2028, the regular qualifiers are still
00:55the easiest and right way to advance. This is just a lifeline if you manage to qualify for the
00:59playoffs. But a lot of things have to fall into place for us to actually reach the playoffs if we
01:02don't qualify through the regular qualifiers, and especially to reach the Euros through the
01:05Nations League rather than through the qualifiers. Nevertheless, there's an element here that's
01:08important to understand. The Nations League is something that carries over into the coming years
01:11as well. That means, if you experience success in the Nations League, you'll have the opportunity to
01:15play, first of all, against stronger national teams, earn more ranking points, and also get
01:18relatively more playoff opportunities in the coming years. And therefore, the most important thing,
01:22first and foremost, is the Euro 2028 qualifiers, where the 12 teams that finish in first place in
01:28the group advance directly to the Euro. There's not much doubt about that. In addition, the 8 best
01:33runners-up also advance directly to the Euro, and that gets us to 20 of the 24 teams. Now, there
01:37is
01:37also a spot that's supposed to be reserved for the hosts. The issue with Euro 2028 is that it will
01:43be
01:43held in the UK, so there are four host countries, England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, and it's
01:48impossible to reserve a spot in the Euro for all of them. So what they did, they said that there
01:52are
01:52two spots reserved among the teams here for those that fail to qualify through the qualifiers. That out
01:57of the 20 direct qualification tickets, if, for example, none of these teams manage to qualify
02:02directly, two reserved spots will go to the teams ranked highest in the qualifiers. That is to say, just as
02:07an
02:07example, England and Ireland, or England and Scotland. And so, from 20 tickets, we go to 22, and we're left
02:15with two playoff spots in total. In another, perhaps realistic scenario where England qualifies directly, and
02:20one spot needs to be reserved for Ireland, Scotland, or Wales, whichever of them is ranked highest in the
02:24qualifiers, then one host uses a reserved spot, leaving three playoff tickets. If two of them, England, Ireland,
02:30Scotland, or Wales, at least two out of the four manage to qualify directly without the playoffs, then there will
02:35be
02:35four playoff tickets for four teams qualifying through the playoff stage, which will include
02:39between two to four of the runners-up from the Euro qualifying stage. That means whoever finishes
02:44in second place in the Euro 2028 qualifying groups, and from there, we move on to the winners of leagues
02:49A through C. And this is where the Israeli national team enters the mix. Because, as you know, the groups
02:53in the Nations League are divided by tiers. We were in League A too, and got relegated from it when
02:57we had that
02:57tough group with France, Belgium, and Italy. And as of right now, in League A, there are 16 teams. In
03:03League B,
03:04there are 16 teams. And we are in League B, in Group B3, the Israeli group, along with Austria,
03:11Ireland, and Kosovo. And here I've moved my camera position, so it's easier for me to show you.
03:15What used to happen, at least in the old model, was the teams were prioritized by tier, meaning,
03:19first of all, those who fail to qualify from League A, fill the playoff stage, followed by League B,
03:24and so on. Now they've changed that, meaning, whoever wins in League B, in Tier B, for example,
03:30if Israel wins this group with Austria, Ireland, and Kosovo, we will almost certainly get priority
03:35in the playoff stage. The reason is that nowadays, priority goes to the group winners of A, B, and C,
03:41and if we win Group B, then naturally we'll get priority. That is, if we finish in second place,
03:46we no longer have any priority. Even more so, the next priority goes to the winner of Group D,
03:52meaning, we're talking here about teams like Malta, Liechtenstein, and so on. And if sports run out there
03:57as well, it goes by the overall ranking. But I really have great doubts that we'll ever somehow
04:02reach such a situation. But we still have an interest in finishing in second place as well,
04:06and I'll explain exactly why. First place not only gets this priority, but also gets promoted directly
04:11back to the top tier, to League A, which is of course the ideal. Ideal, but we're not the favorites
04:16to do it. Austria is a team that's better than us. Kosovo and Ireland are, of course, teams we can't
04:21take lightly, no matter how good our team's form is. Second place goes to the playoffs, head-to-head knockout
04:26games against a League A team, which means we will get a chance to be promoted to League A
04:30for the coming years. We still have an interest in finishing there, it's still a good thing for
04:34us in the long run. Third place simply stays in the second tier, doesn't move anywhere, and fourth
04:40place goes to a relegation playoff against a team coming from League C. Now notice that there is no
04:46direct relegation here, because what UEFA wants to do is increase the number of national teams in each
04:50tier and reduce the number of tiers. And if we do manage to qualify for the playoffs in one way
04:55or
04:55another, whether through the Nations League or through the qualifiers, we have to remember that
04:58the playoffs also depend heavily on the number of British teams that ultimately qualify for the
05:02tournament. If none of them advance, then there is an eight-team playoff, where two tickets are
05:07handed out. If there's one team that qualifies automatically plus another spot secured by the
05:11host allocation, then there's a 12-team playoff, with three tickets in single-leg semifinals and finals,
05:18just like in previous years. And if two British teams qualify directly for the Euro, and there are no
05:23reserved spots here, then there will be an eight-team playoff. Again, just like the first playoff.
05:28You see? Eight teams, fewer teams, but four tickets across four two-legged ties. So we are very
05:33dependent on what happens with other national teams, but it could definitely be a path for us if we win
05:38our group. To make it through the Nations League, prepare for the qualifiers, build a squad that can
05:42really click, and of course, improve our position for the coming years. Now I know it's a lot of
05:45information to take in, and a lot of ifs, because there are many things here that depend on other
05:48factors, and aren't entirely up to us. But bottom line, 20 teams qualify directly for Euro 2028. The
05:5512 group winners, and the 8 best runners-up from the qualifying group stage. So that's settled. 20
06:02teams qualify directly. The rest that go to the playoffs are between 2 to 4 teams that finish as
06:07runners-up in the groups. And of course, again, this also depends on the host teams, whether they
06:11actually qualified or not. After all that is settled, we look back and see who the winners of
06:15Leagues A, B, and C were. We are in League B, and the winners get priority. After that, the League
06:19the winner, it's highly likely this won't happen, and it won't tickle down to the League
06:23the winner, and even if it does, it shouldn't concern us, because Israel has nothing to do
06:26with it, and won't be prioritized in the overall rankings there, so it simply won't happen.
06:30After running all these calculations, which are a million and one scenarios that we'll see
06:34later on, and it's too early to discuss, we'll have a Euro playoff of 8 or 12 teams competing
06:38for between 2 to 4 spots at Euro 2028. The national team's Nations League schedule kicks off
06:44tomorrow, on Thursday, with an away match against Austria, continues with a match against Ireland,
06:48along with, may their names be raised, Kosovo, and then Ireland away. Both matches against Ireland
06:53won't truly be home, nor truly away, and in November, we'll have 2 more games against Kosovo and Austria,
06:58that will wrap up the Nations League, followed by the draw for the Euro 2028 qualifiers.
07:03The draw itself will take place on December 6th, which means toward the end of the calendar year,
07:08where we'll also find out who were drawn against in the Euro 2028 qualifiers.
07:12After we already know the implications of the Nations League stage.
07:15If this is a bit too much information for you, that's completely fine, I'll be here throughout
07:18the entire process to update you on what's happening, because that's just how it is,
07:22it's a lot of information, a lot of things, and a lot of what's happening in all kinds
07:25of other places that impacts many things. We don't always follow everything, but we need
07:29to follow our national team and hope that it succeeds, that's the most important thing
07:32in my opinion. Especially in times like these, especially in times with what's going on
07:35in the world, it fills me with so much more pride to see the Israeli national team,
07:39and I hope they bring us that pride. Fight on the pitch, whether the result is a win
07:42or a loss, it doesn't matter, as long as they represent us with honor.
07:45Thank you so much for watching guys, don't forget to show some love with a like and subscribe
07:48to the channel, I'll be here of course to keep you updated later on, I'm Yisrael Chai, peace out.
