Nations League Quarter-Finals 2027: Who Is Through, How the Ties Work, and What a Bet Covers
Eight League A teams reach the quarter-finals: the four group winners and the four runners-up. The ties are played over two legs between 25 and 30 March 2027, and the four winners go to the finals in June. After matchday 4, two places are settled, a third is all but settled, and the rest are decided between 12 and 17 November 2026.
This page covers the knockout part of the competition: who can still get there, how the draw is seeded, what happens when a tie is level, and which bets stop at ninety minutes. The “who can still get there” notes come from our own calculation: UEFA’s results after matchday 4, every combination of scores up to 4-4 in the remaining League A games, run through the tiebreak order of Article 15 of the regulations. The ranking code reproduced UEFA’s published order in all fourteen groups when we re-ran it on 27 October 2026. Kick-off times are UK time (GMT). No tips, no odds, no predicted line-ups.
The eight places: who is in and who can still get there
UEFA confirmed Spain and Portugal as the first two quarter-finalists after matchday 4, and the arithmetic agrees: nobody outside the top two in Groups A3 and A4 can reach their points. England are in the same position bar one freak scoreline. Türkiye, Serbia and Czechia can no longer finish in the top two, and Croatia only in that England case. That leaves five places for nine teams across Groups A1, A2 and A4.
| Team | Pts | Quarter-final position |
|---|---|---|
| France | 10 | Top two with a point or a win from either game. Two defeats still leave first or second possible, but no longer certain. |
| Italy | 7 | Through with a win in Brussels on 15 November, whatever happens in Milan; also through by beating France and drawing in Brussels. |
| Belgium | 6 | Through with a win against Italy plus at least a draw in Izmir. Any other combination needs help from the Milan result. |
| Türkiye | 0 | Out of the race: France and Italy already have more points than Türkiye can reach (6). |
Thu 12 Nov: Türkiye v Belgium (Izmir, 17:00), Italy v France (Milan, 19:45). Sun 15 Nov: France v Türkiye (Bordeaux, 19:45), Belgium v Italy (Brussels, 19:45).
| Team | Pts | Quarter-final position |
|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 8 | Through with a win in Berlin on 16 November, or with a draw there after not losing to Greece. |
| Greece | 8 | A win in Amsterdam on 13 November makes Greece group winners, whatever follows. A draw in Amsterdam and a point against Serbia is enough for the top two. |
| Germany | 5 | Cannot make sure on their own results. Even two wins (11 points) can end in a three-way tie with Netherlands and Greece, decided on the head-to-head table of the three. |
| Serbia | 0 | Out of the race: Netherlands and Greece already have more points than Serbia can reach (6). |
Fri 13 Nov: Netherlands v Greece (Amsterdam, 19:45), Serbia v Germany (Belgrade, 19:45). Mon 16 Nov: Germany v Netherlands (Berlin, 19:45), Greece v Serbia (Volos, 19:45).
| Team | Pts | Quarter-final position |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 12 | Through. Group winners with any result in Madrid other than a defeat. |
| England | 9 | Through in every case except a Croatia win at Wembley by seven goals or more, combined with an England defeat in Madrid and a Croatia win over Czechia. First place needs a win in Madrid. |
| Croatia | 3 | Only the extreme Wembley case above. Croatia lost 7-0 at home to England, and level on points the head-to-head comes first. |
| Czechia | 0 | Out of the race: Spain and England already have more points than Czechia can reach (6). |
Thu 12 Nov: Czechia v Spain (Prague, 19:45), England v Croatia (Wembley, 19:45). Sun 15 Nov: Croatia v Czechia (Osijek, 19:45), Spain v England (Madrid, 19:45).
| Team | Pts | Quarter-final position |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 12 | Through. Group winners unless they lose both remaining games. |
| Denmark | 6 | Through with a win at home to Norway on 17 November, whatever happens in Braga, or with a win in Braga and a draw against Norway. |
| Norway | 3 | Through by winning both games, in Oslo against Wales and in Copenhagen. Any other combination needs help. |
| Wales | 3 | Can finish second, but only if Denmark fail to win either of their last two games, and Wales need at least one win. Denmark beat Wales in both meetings, so level on points the head-to-head goes Denmark's way. |
Sat 14 Nov: Norway v Wales (Oslo, 17:00), Portugal v Denmark (Braga, 19:45). Tue 17 Nov: Denmark v Norway (Copenhagen, 19:45), Wales v Portugal (Cardiff, 19:45).
Two caveats on those notes. They hold for every scoreline up to 4-4; where only a bigger margin could change an outcome, the note says so (the England case). And a small number of combinations end level all the way down to disciplinary points or the access list, which no score can settle in advance; we count those as either order. The step-by-step version of the tiebreak order, with worked examples, is in how Nations League group positions are decided. What England and Wales need result by result, alongside Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Malta in the lower leagues, is on Nations League November 2026: what each team needs.
How the quarter-final draw works, and why first place matters
Article 17.02 of the regulations sets the pairings by draw. The four group winners are seeded, and each is drawn against a runner-up from a different group. UEFA can add further draw conditions with the approval of its Executive Committee. The ties are numbered quarter-final 1 to 4, and the semi-final pairings are drawn as well, under Article 17.05. UEFA’s 2026 calendar puts the knockout stage and play-off draw in November 2026, with the date still to be confirmed. In the last edition the equivalent draw was held in Nyon on 22 November 2024, three days after the league phase ended.
Three consequences follow, and each of them changes what a group position is worth.
- Group rivals cannot meet again in March. If Spain and England finish first and second in Group A3, they cannot be drawn together in the quarter-finals. The same applies to Portugal and whoever finishes second in Group A4.
- The group winner has the second leg at home. Article 17.03 has the runner-up host the first leg. If the tie is level after both legs, extra time and penalties are played at the group winner’s stadium.
- A runner-up always meets a group winner. Second place is a quarter-final place, but against one of the four sides that topped a group. For a team such as Italy, Greece or Netherlands, the difference between first and second on 17 November is the difference between drawing a runner-up and drawing a group winner.
Spain and Portugal are guaranteed a place, but not yet a seed: each can still finish first or second, and that is the only thing the draw looks at. Their quarter-final opponents stay unknown until both the November games and the draw are done.
Two legs, then extra time at the end of the second: the rules round by round
The knockout part of the competition does not use one rule for a level score. Articles 17 and 18 give three different answers depending on the round.
| Round | When | Format | If level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter-finals | 25–30 March 2027 | Two legs. The group runner-up is at home first, the group winner at home second. | Aggregate level after two legs: extra time (2 × 15 minutes) at the end of the second leg, then penalties. No away goals. |
| Semi-finals | Finals week, 9–13 June 2027 | Single match at a stadium chosen by UEFA. Pairings drawn. | Level after 90 minutes: extra time, then penalties. |
| Third-place match | Finals week, 9–13 June 2027 | Single match between the losing semi-finalists. | Level after 90 minutes: straight to penalties. No extra time. |
| Final | Finals week, 9–13 June 2027 | Single match between the semi-final winners. | Level after 90 minutes: extra time, then penalties. |
The first leg of a quarter-final is an ordinary match that can end level, and nothing is played after ninety minutes plus stoppage time. Extra time only exists at the end of a second leg, and only if the aggregate is level. The aggregate counts goals and nothing else: Article 17.03 sends through “the team that scores the greater aggregate of goals in the two matches”, and Article 18.01 goes from a level aggregate straight to two fifteen-minute periods, then penalties. Away goals play no part.
The third-place match in June is the one knockout game with no extra time: if it is level at the end of normal time, Article 18.03 goes straight to a penalty shoot-out. The League A/B and League B/C play-offs in the same March window follow the quarter-final rule; who plays in those is on Nations League promotion and relegation, group by group.
What happened last time: the March 2025 quarter-finals
UEFA added the two-legged quarter-final round in 2024/25, so there is exactly one previous set of ties to look at. Three of the four went past 180 minutes, and two of them needed penalties. The second legs were played on 23 March 2025.
| Tie | First leg | Second leg, 90 minutes | How it ended | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands v Spain | Netherlands 2-2 Spain | Spain 2-2 Netherlands | 3-3 after extra time, Spain won 5-4 on penalties | Draw over 90 minutes in both legs. Spain went through. |
| Croatia v France | Croatia 2-0 France | France 2-0 Croatia | Still 2-0 after extra time, France won 5-4 on penalties | France won the second leg over 90 minutes, and still needed penalties to go through. |
| Denmark v Portugal | Denmark 1-0 Portugal | Portugal 3-2 Denmark | 5-2 after extra time, Portugal through 5-3 on aggregate | Level 3-3 on aggregate at 90 minutes; two extra-time goals decided it. |
| Italy v Germany | Italy 1-2 Germany | Germany 3-3 Italy | No extra time, Germany through 5-4 on aggregate | Germany drew the second leg and went through. A bet on Germany to win that match lost. |
Put the second-leg match result next to the team that went through and they agree in only two ties out of four. Spain and Germany both progressed after a ninety-minute draw, so a bet on either of them to win the second leg lost on the night they qualified. France and Portugal both won their second legs over ninety minutes, but neither was through at that point: one went to penalties and the other to extra time. The final in June 2025 went the same way, 2-2 after extra time, with Portugal beating Spain on penalties.
One edition is not a base rate, and none of this says the 2027 ties will be close. What it shows is that a two-legged tie between eight sides of similar standing can easily reach extra time, which is exactly where a match bet and a qualification bet part company.
Which bet settles on what
- First-leg match result. Ninety minutes plus stoppage time. A draw is a result, and there is never extra time to worry about.
- Second-leg match result, correct score, goals markets. Normally ninety minutes plus stoppage time as well, so goals in extra time do not count. That is what turned Spain’s and Germany’s qualifications into losing match bets in 2025.
- To qualify or to progress. Settled on who goes through, including extra time and penalties. Priced on the second leg, it has to account for the first-leg score, which is why it can look very different from the match odds. How these markets work, and how to read them against the match price, is in to-qualify betting explained.
- Method of qualification and aggregate markets. These split the route into ninety minutes, extra time and penalties, or settle on the combined score. Whether an aggregate market counts extra-time goals depends on the operator’s rules, so read them for the market you are using. The general rules for ninety-minute, extra-time and shoot-out settlement are in extra time and penalties: what your bet covers.
- Outright winner. A Nations League winner bet stays open from now until the final in June 2027. Long-dated markets of this kind carry a wider margin than a single match; the margin calculator shows how wide, the odds converter turns a price into the probability it implies, and outright betting explained covers how those books are built.
One calendar detail for March. UK and Irish clocks go forward on Sunday 28 March 2027, inside the 25–30 March window, and Malta’s change on the same day. A first leg played before that Sunday and a second leg played after it will be an hour apart in local time even if UEFA uses the same kick-off slot. Check the time on the fixture itself rather than carrying it over from the first leg.
Dates, format and the season tracker for the whole competition are on the Nations League 2026/27 hub, and what a Nations League group win is worth for the EURO 2028 play-offs is in our EURO 2028 qualifying guide.
Frequently asked questions
When are the Nations League quarter-finals?
The quarter-finals are played over two legs between 25 and 30 March 2027, in the same international window as the League A/B and League B/C play-offs. The eight teams are known on the evening of 17 November 2026, when the League A groups finish. UEFA's 2026 calendar lists the knockout stage and play-off draw for November 2026 without a confirmed date. The finals (semi-finals, third-place match and final) follow from 9 to 13 June 2027; UEFA had not confirmed the host when this page was published.
Who has qualified for the Nations League quarter-finals so far?
After matchday 4, Spain (Group A3) and Portugal (Group A4) are certain of a top-two finish and a quarter-final place. England are also top two in every case except an extreme one: a Croatia win at Wembley by seven goals or more, with England losing in Madrid and Croatia beating Czechia. The other places are open in Groups A1, A2 and A4, and Türkiye, Serbia and Czechia can no longer finish in the top two.
Can England play Spain in the Nations League quarter-finals?
Not if they finish first and second in Group A3, which is where they are heading. Under Article 17.02 of the regulations, each group winner is drawn against a runner-up from a different group, so two teams from the same group cannot meet in the quarter-finals. They could still meet in the semi-finals or the final, which are drawn separately.
Do away goals count in the Nations League quarter-finals?
No. Article 17.03 sends through the team with the greater aggregate of goals over the two legs, and if the aggregate is level Article 18.01 goes straight to two 15-minute periods of extra time at the end of the second leg, then a penalty shoot-out. There is no away-goals step. Extra time is never played at the end of a first leg.
Does a bet on the second leg include extra time and penalties?
A match result bet is normally settled on the score after 90 minutes plus stoppage time, so extra time and penalties are not included; a to qualify or to progress bet is settled on which team goes through, so they are. In March 2025, Spain and Germany both went through after drawing their second legs over 90 minutes, which means a bet on either to win that match lost even though the team progressed. Each operator's rules are the binding text, so check how yours settles match result, aggregate and method-of-qualification markets.
Sources
Read on 27 October 2026. Standings, results, fixtures, venues and kick-off times are UEFA’s published data after matchday 4; the 2025 quarter-final scores are UEFA’s match data and its quarter-final results page. The “quarter-final position” notes are our own calculation under Article 15, as described at the top of the page. No operator is named and no price appears on this page.
- UEFA, Regulations of the UEFA Nations League 2026/27, Article 17 — match system, League A knockout stage — documents.uefa.com
- UEFA, Regulations of the UEFA Nations League 2026/27, Article 18 — extra time and penalty shoot-outs — documents.uefa.com
- UEFA, Regulations of the UEFA Nations League 2026/27, Article 15 — equality of points, league phase — documents.uefa.com
- UEFA, 2026/27 UEFA Nations League: all you need to know (dates of the quarter-finals, play-offs and finals) — uefa.com
- UEFA, 2026 European football calendar (knockout stage and play-off draw, November 2026, date to be confirmed) — uefa.com
- UEFA, UEFA Nations League standings — uefa.com
- UEFA, Nations League quarter-finals: results, who qualified (March 2025) — uefa.com
18+. A quarter-final bet placed in November is a bet on games four months away, and an outright on the winner runs to June. Set the amount before you place it and leave it there rather than topping it up as the draw and the March fixtures come out. Deposit limits, time-outs and support are on our responsible gambling page.