UEFA Comité sets finals venues while Nations League revamp looms

The UEFA Comité met in Tesalónica, Grecia, to map out the agenda for upcoming competitions while putting the FIFA dispute and Gianni Infantino’s re‑election aside, and it also approved adjustments to the Nations League. The meeting confirmed that the 2027/28 Champions final will be staged at the Munich Football Arena in Alemania, with the renovated Camp Nou set to host the 2028/29 showpiece.

Con the FIFA issue and Gianni Infantino’s re‑election on the back‑burner, the UEFA Comité gathered senior officials to finalise the calendar and venue allocations. The gathering in Tesalónica, Grecia, was described as a decisive step toward stabilising the European football programme for the next decade.

Club competition venues set

The committee allocated the Champions League finals to two iconic stadiums: the first to the Munich Football Arena in Alemania and the second to the Camp Nou after its recent refurbishment. The Europa League and Conference League also received confirmed sites, with the National Arena in Bucarest and the National Stadium Serbia in Belgrado earmarked for the second‑tier competition, while the Juventus Stadium in Turín and the Puskás Aréna in Budapest will host the third‑tier final between 2028 and 2029. The decisions also touch DE and LA markets, reflecting broader commercial considerations.

Nations League format revamped

Within the same session, the UEFA Comité approved a series of changes to the NATIONS LEAGUE promotion and relegation system for 2026/27, paving the way for a new structure approved in May 2026. From the 2028/29 season, the competition will shrink from four leagues to three, each comprising 18 teams split into three groups of six, with each team playing six matches against five different opponents.

With 55 national sides participating, League C will feature a group of seven teams, meaning its schedule will begin a window earlier than the others. The quarter‑finals, final‑four and promotion/relegation playoffs will remain unchanged, preserving the knockout excitement.

UEFA also overhauled the qualification pathway: the top‑ranked teams from each League 1 group will qualify directly for the Euro 2028 qualifiers, while the remaining spots will be allocated via a play‑off system that also offers League 2 teams a realistic route to the tournament. These reforms aim to ensure a fairer distribution of qualification chances across the continent.