2020–21 UEFA Nations League C

The 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C is the third division of the 2020–21 edition of the UEFA Nations League, the second season of the international football competition involving the men's national teams of the 55 member associations of UEFA.[1]

2020–21 UEFA Nations League C
Tournament details
DatesLeague phase:
3 September – 18 November 2020
Relegation play-outs:
24–29 March 2022
Teams16
Promoted Albania
 Armenia
 Montenegro
 Slovenia
Tournament statistics
Matches played48
Goals scored97 (2.02 per match)
Attendance9,067 (189 per match)
Top scorer(s) Sokol Cikalleshi
Rauno Sappinen
Stevan Jovetić
Haris Vučkić
(4 goals each)

Format

Following a format change from the first season, League C was expanded from 15 to 16 teams.[2] The league consisted of UEFA members ranked from 33–48 in the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League overall ranking, to be split into four groups of four. Each team played six matches within their group, using the home-and-away round-robin format on double matchdays in September, October and November 2020.[3] The winners of each group were promoted to the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League B, and the fourth-placed team of each group advanced to the relegation play-outs.[4]

As League C had four groups while League D had only two, the two League C teams that are to be relegated will be determined by play-outs in March 2022. Based on the Nations League overall ranking, the best-ranked team will face the fourth-ranked team, and the second-ranked team will face the third-ranked team. Two ties will be played over two legs, with each team playing one leg at home (the higher-ranked team will host the second leg). The team that scores more goals on aggregate over the two legs will remain in League C, while the loser will be relegated to League D. If the aggregate score is level, the away goals rule is applied, with extra time played if away goals are also equal. The away goals rule is again applied after extra time, with a penalty shoot-out used to decide the winner if no goals are scored during extra time.[4]

Teams

Team changes

The following were the team changes of League C from the 2018–19 season:

Incoming
Promoted from
Nations League D
Group winners: Following format change:
Outgoing
Promoted to
Nations League B
Group winners: Following format change:

The following team changes were initially set to occur in League C, but did not after no teams were relegated due to the format change by UEFA:

Incoming
Initially relegated from
Nations League B
Outgoing
Initially relegated to
Nations League D

Seeding

In the 2020–21 access list, UEFA ranked teams based on the 2018–19 Nations League overall ranking, with a slight modification: teams that were originally relegated in the previous season were ranked immediately below teams promoted prior to the format change.[5][6] The seeding pots for the league phase were confirmed 4 December 2019,[7] and were based on the access list ranking.[4][8]

Pot 1
Team Rank
 Greece 33
 Albania 34
 Montenegro 35
 Georgia 36
Pot 2
Team Rank
 North Macedonia 37
 Kosovo 38
 Belarus 39
 Cyprus 40
Pot 3
Team Rank
 Estonia 41
 Slovenia 42
 Lithuania 43
 Luxembourg 44
Pot 4
Team Rank
 Armenia 45
 Azerbaijan 46
 Kazakhstan 47
 Moldova 48

The draw for the league phase took place at the Beurs van Berlage Conference Centre in Amsterdam, Netherlands on 3 March 2020, 18:00 CET.[9][10][11][12] Each group contained one team from each pot.

Groups

The original fixture list was confirmed by UEFA on 3 March 2020 following the draw.[13] On 17 June 2020, the UEFA Executive Committee adjusted the league phase schedule for October and November 2020 to allow for the completion of the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying play-offs.[14][15] Following the change, a revised schedule for the October and November 2020 fixtures was released by UEFA on 26 June 2020.[16][17]

Times are CET/CEST,[note 1] as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).

Group 1

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or qualification
1  Montenegro (P) 6 4 1 1 10 2 +8 13 Promotion to League B 1–2 2–0 4–0
2  Luxembourg 6 3 1 2 7 5 +2 10 0–1 0–0 2–0
3  Azerbaijan 6 1 3 2 2 4 2 6 0–0 1–2 0–0
4  Cyprus (Q) 6 1 1 4 2 10 8 4 Qualification to relegation play-outs 0–2 2–1 0–1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.
Azerbaijan 1–2 Luxembourg
Report
Cyprus 0–2 Montenegro
Report

Cyprus 0–1 Azerbaijan
Report
Attendance: 0[22][note 2]
Referee: Filip Glova (Slovakia)
Luxembourg 0–1 Montenegro
Report
Attendance: 0[23][note 2]
Referee: Lawrence Visser (Belgium)

Luxembourg 2–0 Cyprus
Report
Montenegro 2–0 Azerbaijan
Report

Azerbaijan 0–0 Cyprus
Report
Attendance: 0[27][note 3]
Referee: Fran Jović (Croatia)
Montenegro 1–2 Luxembourg
Report

Azerbaijan 0–0 Montenegro
Report
Cyprus 2–1 Luxembourg
Report

Luxembourg 0–0 Azerbaijan
Report
Montenegro 4–0 Cyprus
Report
Attendance: 0[34][note 3]
Referee: Eitan Shemeulevitch (Israel)

Group 2

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or qualification
1  Armenia (P) 6 3 2 1 9 6 +3 11 Promotion to League B 1–0 2–2 2–0
2  North Macedonia 6 2 3 1 9 8 +1 9 2–1 1–1 2–1
3  Georgia 6 1 4 1 6 6 0 7 1–2 1–1 0–0
4  Estonia (Q) 6 0 3 3 5 9 4 3 Qualification to relegation play-outs 1–1 3–3 0–1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.
North Macedonia 2–1 Armenia
Report
Estonia 0–1 Georgia
Report
Attendance: 0[36][note 2]
Referee: Donatas Rumšas (Lithuania)

Armenia 2–0 Estonia
Report
Georgia 1–1 North Macedonia
Report
Attendance: 0[38][note 2]
Referee: Peter Kjærsgaard-Andersen (Denmark)

Armenia 2–2 Georgia
Report
Attendance: 0[39][note 3]
Referee: Ivan Bebek (Croatia)
Estonia 3–3 North Macedonia
Report

Estonia 1–1 Armenia
Report
Attendance: 1,007[41]
Referee: Luis Godinho (Portugal)
North Macedonia 1–1 Georgia
Report
Attendance: 0[42][note 3]
Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (Poland)

North Macedonia 2–1 Estonia
Report
Georgia 1–2 Armenia
Report

Armenia 1–0 North Macedonia
Report
Georgia 0–0 Estonia
Report

Group 3

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or qualification
1  Slovenia (P) 6 4 2 0 8 1 +7 14 Promotion to League B 0–0 2–1 1–0
2  Greece 6 3 3 0 6 1 +5 12 0–0 0–0 2–0
3  Kosovo 6 1 2 3 4 6 2 5 0–1 1–2 1–0
4  Moldova (Q) 6 0 1 5 1 11 10 1 Qualification to relegation play-outs 0–4 0–2 1–1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.
Moldova 1–1 Kosovo
Report
Attendance: 0[48][note 2]
Referee: Kai Erik Steen (Norway)
Slovenia 0–0 Greece
Report

Slovenia 1–0 Moldova
Report
Attendance: 0[50][note 2]
Referee: Jérôme Brisard (France)
Kosovo 1–2 Greece
Report

Greece 2–0 Moldova
Report
Attendance: 0[52][note 3]
Referee: Dennis Higler (Netherlands)
Kosovo 0–1 Slovenia
Report

Greece 0–0 Kosovo
Report
Attendance: 0[54][note 3]
Referee: Roi Reinshreiber (Israel)
Moldova 0–4 Slovenia
Report

Moldova 0–2 Greece
Report
Attendance: 0[56][note 3]
Referee: Fran Jović (Croatia)
Slovenia 2–1 Kosovo
Report
Attendance: 0[57][note 3]
Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (Poland)

Greece 0–0 Slovenia
Report
Kosovo 1–0 Moldova
Report
Attendance: 0[59][note 3]
Referee: Roomer Tarajev (Estonia)

Group 4

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or qualification
1  Albania (P) 6 3 2 1 8 4 +4 11 Promotion to League B 3–2 0–1 3–1
2  Belarus 6 3 1 2 10 8 +2 10 0–2 2–0 2–0
3  Lithuania 6 2 2 2 5 7 2 8 0–0 2–2 0–2
4  Kazakhstan (Q) 6 1 1 4 5 9 4 4 Qualification to relegation play-outs 0–0 1–2 1–2
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.
Lithuania 0–2 Kazakhstan
Report
Attendance: 0[60][note 2]
Referee: Rade Obrenovič (Slovenia)
Belarus 0–2 Albania
Report

Kazakhstan 1–2 Belarus
Report
Attendance: 0[62][note 2]
Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili (Georgia)
Albania 0–1 Lithuania
Report

Kazakhstan 0–0 Albania
Report
Attendance: 0[64][note 3]
Referee: Dumitru Muntean (Moldova)
Lithuania 2–2 Belarus
Report
Attendance: 963[65]
Referee: Julian Weinberger (Austria)

Lithuania 0–0 Albania
Report
Attendance: 696[66]
Referee: Karim Abed (France)
Belarus 2–0 Kazakhstan
Report

Albania 3–1 Kazakhstan
Report
Belarus 2–0 Lithuania
Report
Attendance: 1,985[69]

Albania 3–2 Belarus
Report
Kazakhstan 1–2 Lithuania
Report

Relegation play-outs

The fourth-placed teams of League C will participate in the relegation play-outs to determine the two teams which will be relegated. The relegation play-outs are scheduled on the same dates as the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying play-offs. If one or more of the teams due to participate in the relegation play-outs also qualifies for the World Cup qualifying play-offs, the relegation play-outs will be cancelled and the teams in League C ranked 47th and 48th in the Nations League overall ranking will be automatically relegated.[4]

The play-out ties are as follows, with the higher-ranked teams hosting the second leg:[4]

  • Team ranked first vs. team ranked fourth
  • Team ranked second vs. team ranked third

Times are CET/CEST,[note 9] as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).

Ranking

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 C4  Kazakhstan 6 1 1 4 5 9 4 4
2 C1  Cyprus 6 1 1 4 2 10 8 4
3 C2  Estonia 6 0 3 3 5 9 4 3
4 C3  Moldova 6 0 1 5 1 11 10 1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Ranking criteria

Summary

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Moldova   Kazakhstan 24–25 Mar '22 28–29 Mar '22
Estonia   Cyprus 24–25 Mar '22 28–29 Mar '22

Matches

Moldova v Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan v Moldova

Estonia v Cyprus
Cyprus v Estonia

Goalscorers

There have been 97 goals scored in 48 matches, for an average of 2.02 goals per match (as of 18 November 2020).

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

Overall ranking

The 16 League C teams were ranked 33rd to 48th overall in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League according to the following rules:[4][72]

  • The teams finishing first in the groups were ranked 33rd to 36th according to the results of the league phase.
  • The teams finishing second in the groups were ranked 37th to 40th according to the results of the league phase.
  • The teams finishing third in the groups were ranked 41st to 44th according to the results of the league phase.
  • The teams finishing fourth in the groups were ranked 45th to 48th according to the results of the league phase.
Rnk Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
33 C3  Slovenia 6 4 2 0 8 1 +7 14
34 C1  Montenegro 6 4 1 1 10 2 +8 13
35 C4  Albania 6 3 2 1 8 4 +4 11
36 C2  Armenia 6 3 2 1 9 6 +3 11
37 C3  Greece 6 3 3 0 6 1 +5 12
38 C4  Belarus 6 3 1 2 10 8 +2 10
39 C1  Luxembourg 6 3 1 2 7 5 +2 10
40 C2  North Macedonia 6 2 3 1 9 8 +1 9
41 C4  Lithuania 6 2 2 2 5 7 2 8
42 C2  Georgia 6 1 4 1 6 6 0 7
43 C1  Azerbaijan 6 1 3 2 2 4 2 6
44 C3  Kosovo 6 1 2 3 4 6 2 5
45 C4  Kazakhstan 6 1 1 4 5 9 4 4
46 C1  Cyprus 6 1 1 4 2 10 8 4
47 C2  Estonia 6 0 3 3 5 9 4 3
48 C3  Moldova 6 0 1 5 1 11 10 1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Ranking criteria

Notes

  1. CEST (UTC+2) for matchdays 1–4 (September and October 2020), CET (UTC+1) for matchdays 5–6 (November 2020).
  2. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, all matches scheduled for September 2020 were played behind closed doors.[19][20]
  3. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the match was played behind closed doors.
  4. The Azerbaijan v Cyprus match, originally scheduled to be played at Olympic Stadium, Baku, was later moved to the neutral Elbasan Arena, Elbasan, due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.[26]
  5. The Azerbaijan v Montenegro match, originally scheduled to be played at Olympic Stadium, Baku, was later moved to the neutral Ivan Laljak-Ivić Stadium, Zaprešić, as UEFA announced on 20 October 2020 to temporarily suspend all UEFA matches taking place in Armenia and Azerbaijan until further notice due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.[29][30]
  6. The Armenia v Georgia match, originally scheduled to be played at Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, Yerevan, was later moved to the neutral City Stadium, Tychy, due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.[26]
  7. The Armenia v North Macedonia match, originally scheduled to be played at Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, Yerevan, was later moved to a neutral GSP Stadium, Nicosia, as UEFA announced on 20 October 2020 to temporarily suspend all UEFA matches taking place in Armenia and Azerbaijan until further notice due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.[29]
  8. The match between Moldova and Kosovo was played on neutral venue as there were no diplomatic relations between the two countries.[47]
  9. CET (UTC+1) for the first leg matches (24–25 March 2022), and CEST (UTC+2) for the second leg matches (28–29 March 2022).

References

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