Despite being seen initially as yet another example of UEFA meddling in an already packed football schedule, the Nations League has proved a success. The idea was that by replacing most international friendlies with a league structure teams of similar ability would play each other more often, leading to more competitive and more meaningful matches. Following the inaugural tournament in 2018-19 that certainly proved to be true.
The addition of qualification places for the Euros / World Cup for lower leagues added significant incentive for teams to want to win, and the promise of the a rare international trophy for the finalists from League A resulted in some seriously competitive football.
Portugal, Netherlands, Switzerland and England all won their respective League A groups in 2018 and as a consequence gained a place in the finals in June 2019. Portugal were selected as hosts and went on to win the first ever trophy, beating Switzerland in the semis and the Dutch in the final. England achieved third place beating Switzerland in the third-place play-off following their semi-final defeat to the Netherlands.
League A
| Country | Final Rank | Group | Group Position | W-D-L | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Portugal |
1 | 3 | 1 | 2-2-0 | 8 |
 Netherlands |
2 | 1 | 1 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 England |
3 | 4 | 1 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 Switzerland |
4 | 2 | 1 | 3-0-1 | 9 |
 Belgium |
5 | 2 | 2 | 3-0-1 | 9 |
 France |
6 | 1 | 2 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 Spain |
7 | 4 | 2 | 2-02 | 6 |
 Italy |
8 | 3 | 2 | 1-2-1 | 5 |
 Croatia |
9 | 4 | 3 | 1-1-2 | 4 |
 Poland |
10 | 3 | 3 | 0-2-2 | 2 |
 Germany |
11 | 1 | 3 | 0-2-2 | 2 |
 Iceland |
12 | 2 | 3 | 0-0-4 | 0 |
League B
| Country | Final Rank | Group | Group Position | W-D-L | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bos & Herz |
13 | 3 | 1 | 3-1-0 | 10 |
 Ukraine |
14 | 1 | 1 | 3-0-1 | 9 |
 Denmark |
15 | 4 | 1 | 2-2-0 | 8 |
 Sweden |
16 | 2 | 1 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 Russia |
17 | 2 | 2 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 Austria |
18 | 3 | 2 | 2-1-1 | 7 |
 Wales |
19 | 4 | 2 | 2-0-2 | 6 |
 Czech Rep |
20 | 1 | 2 | 2-0-2 | 6 |
 Slovakia |
21 | 1 | 3 | 1-0-3 | 3 |
 Turkey |
22 | 2 | 3 | 1-0-3 | 3 |
 Ireland |
23 | 4 | 3 | 0-2-2 | 2 |
 N. Ireland |
24 | 3 | 3 | 0-0-4 | 0 |
League C
| Country | Final Rank | Group | Group Position | W-D-L | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Scotland |
25 | 1 | 1 | 3-0-1 | 9 |
 Norway |
26 | 3 | 1 | 4-1-1 | 13 |
 Serbia |
27 | 4 | 1 | 4-2-0 | 14 |
 Finland |
28 | 2 | 1 | 4-0-2 | 12 |
 Bulgaria |
29 | 3 | 2 | 3-2-1 | 11 |
 Israel |
30 | 1 | 2 | 2-0-2 | 6 |
 Hungary |
31 | 2 | 2 | 3-1-2 | 10 |
 Romania |
32 | 4 | 2 | 3-3-0 | 12 |
 Greece |
33 | 2 | 3 | 3-0-3 | 9 |
 Albania |
34 | 1 | 3 | 1-1-4 | 3 |
 Montenegro |
35 | 4 | 3 | 2-1-3 | 7 |
 Cyprus |
36 | 3 | 3 | 1-2-3 | 5 |
 Estonia |
37 | 2 | 4 | 1-1-4 | 4 |
 Slovenia |
38 | 3 | 4 | 0-3-3 | 3 |
 Lithuania |
39 | 4 | 4 | 0-0-6 | 0 |
League D
| Country | Final Rank | Group | Group Position | W-D-L | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Georgia |
40 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 16 |
 Macedonia |
41 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 15 |
 Kosovo |
42 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 14 |
 Belarus |
43 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 14 |
 Luxembourg |
44 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
 Armenia |
45 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
 Azerbaijan |
46 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
 Khazakhstan |
47 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
 Moldova |
48 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
 Gibraltar |
49 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
 Faroe Is |
50 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
 Latvia |
51 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
 Liech’stein |
52 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
 Andorra |
53 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
 Malta |
54 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
 San Marino |
55 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
Semi-Finals
| Fixture | UK KO Time | Stadium | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal |
v | Switzerland |
5th June, 19:45 | Estádio do Dragão |
| England |
v | Netherlands |
6th June, 19:45 | Estádio D. |
Third Place Play-Off
| Fixture | UK KO Time | Stadium | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England |
v | Switzerland |
9th June, 15:00 | Estádio D. |
2019 Nations League Final
| Fixture | UK KO Time | Stadium | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands |
v | Portugal |
9th June, 19:45 | Estádio do Dragão |