Scotland were sent crashing out of League A in the Nations League on Sunday evening, when they were soundly beaten in the second leg of their promotion/relegation play-off against Greece.
Scott McTominay scored the only goal of the game when he fired home a first-half penalty in Thursday night’s first leg in Greece, but a 3-0 Hampden Park reverse means that Steve Clarke’s side will be in League B when the Nations League returns following the 2026 World Cup.
Midfielder John McGinn rued what was ‘an embarrassing night’ for the Scots, who must now regroup before beginning their World Cup qualifying campaign.
Euro 2028 qualification could have a significant change
Alongside Scotland in Group C will be Denmark, Belarus and Greece, with the winners assured of a place at next summer’s tournament and the runners-up entering a play-off round. The tournament itself has been expanded from 32 teams to 48, with UEFA having 16 direct spots to fill.
As part of UEFA’s qualification process, a strong Nations League performance can see teams handed a lifeline, as the four best-ranked group winners who do not go on to finish in the top two of their World Cup qualifying group next year will be handed a play-off spot.
So with Scotland dropping down to League B for the 2026/27 Nations League, will that be a major blow for their Euro 2028 qualification campaign?
It’s unlikely, due to a unique wrinkle in the next tournament. That’s because Euro 2028 will be held in the home nations of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, meaning Scotland are one of an unprecedented five co-hosts.
And while co-hosts are usually given an automatic qualification spot, the tournament – bar Euro 2020 – has never been held across more than two countries and UEFA are unlikely to dish out five automatic spots.
While the British and Irish FAs await a UEFA ruling on the matter, one mooted scenario is that all five co-hosts – England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland – will enter qualification as usual, with two places kept back as a safety net for any co-host that fails to make it through.
The qualifying process itself will also have a new format, as there will now be 12 groups of four or five teams, rather than the ten groups of five or six teams that were used for Euro 2024 qualifying.
The winners will qualify automatically, with runners-up either going through automatically or paired up in play-offs against teams who have qualified via the Nations League.
