Italy to host Nations League finals next October, Tirana to stage new Conference final

December 4 – Italy have been chosen to host the climax of the Nations League in October next year and will face Spain while Belgium take on France in two mouth-watering ties

The Italians had been the frontrunners to organise the final four of the competition after the Netherlands and Poland had also expressed interest, but those nations failed to progress from the group stages. All  matches will be at San Siro in Milan on October 6 and the Juventus Stadium in Turin a day later, with the final will take place in Milan on October 10.

Italy, who topped Nations League Group A1, will face Spain for the first time in a major tournament since they beat them 2-0 in the last-16 of Euro 2016. Group A3 winners France renew their rivalry with Belgium, having beaten them 1-0 in their last meeting at the 2018 World Cup semi-finals in Russia before going on to win the tournament.

Meanwhile, following a meeting of its executive committee, UEFA said the Albanian capital of Tirana would host the first final of its brand new third-tier club competition – the Europa Conference League – in May, 2022. The National Arena in the Albanian capital will stage the match.

The competition launches next season below the Champions League and Europa League to help countries whose teams cannot realistically compete in the two senior tournaments.

The Europa Conference League will have teams from all 55 UEFA member countries enter the qualifying rounds, before a 32-team group stage and knockout rounds. Whoever is crowned champion will earn a place in the following season’s Europa League, which will cut its group stage from 48 teams to 32 from 2021.

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