How it stands after second block of Women's Nations League matches
Northern Ireland's Simone Magill (left), England's Jess Park (centre) and Scotland's Emma Lawton have all scored in the Women's Nations League this year
- Published
The business end of the Women's Nations League group stage is on the horizon and there's been mixed fortunes for England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland across the opening four rounds of games.
England enjoyed a bright first half of the tournament, picking up two wins and one draw, but had their unbeaten run ended by Belgium.
Republic of Ireland have three victories from their opening four matches while Northern Ireland have registered two wins, one draw and a defeat.
However, Scotland and Wales remain winless.
The final block of group matches will take place on 30 May and 3 June.
BBC Sport takes a look at the competition so far, what is up for grabs in the tournament and how England and Wales' preparations are going for this summer's Euros in Switzerland.
What is the Women's Nations League?
The league was launched in 2023, with the inaugural tournament offering qualification spots for the 2025 Women's European Championship.
Countries have been placed into groups of three or four teams, across three different leagues, with promotion and relegation between the leagues depending on the match results.
And there's a lot at stake.
Teams are not only competing for the Nations League title, but their finishing position will also determine where they start in the league system for the European qualifiers for the 2027 Women's World Cup.
What has happened so far? Next fixtures?
England, Scotland and Wales are all in the top league - League A.
Scotland remain rooted to the bottom of Group A1, with four defeats in four matches.
They suffered two narrow losses in February - 1-0 in Austria and then 2-1 at home to the Netherlands - but fared less well against table-toppers Germany.
They lost 4-0 at Dundee United's Tannadice Park on 4 April before conceding five goals in 16 minutes en route to a 6-1 hammering in Frankfurt four days later.
France remain unbeaten at the top of Group A2, registering victories over Norway (1-0 and 2-0), Iceland (3-2), and Switzerland (2-0).
Next matches in Group A1 and A2
Group A1: 30 May - Germany v Netherlands, Scotland v Austria; 3 June - Austria v Germany, Netherlands v Scotland.
Group A2: 30 May - France v Switzerland, Norway v Iceland; 3 June - Iceland v France, Switzerland v Norway.
England began their Group A3 campaign with an underwhelming 1-1 draw in Portugal, but looked closer to their best in their next match as Jess Park scored in a superb 1-0 win at Wembley over reigning world champions Spain.
The Lionesses, who will attempt to defend their European title in Switzerland this summer, made it back-to-back wins - going top of the table by beating Belgium 5-0 at Bristol City's Ashton Gate on 4 April.
However, they were brought crashing back down to earth in Leuven, suffering a 3-2 defeat despite a stunning debut goal from teenager Michelle Agyemang and now find themselves in second place behind Spain.
Wales, who are preparing to compete in their first major women's tournament this summer, are four points adrift at the bottom of Group A4 and still waiting for their first win.
They lost 1-0 to Italy in their competition opener before responding with an impressive 1-1 draw at home to Sweden, courtesy of Kayleigh Barton's penalty equaliser.
And they picked up another point against Sweden, drawing 1-1 in Gothenburg on 8 April, to bounce back well from a 2-1 defeat by Denmark at the Cardiff City Stadium four days earlier.
Next matches in Group A3 and A4
Group A3: 30 May - England v Portugal, Belgium v Spain; 3 June - Spain v England, Portugal v Belgium.
Group A4: 30 May - Denmark v Wales, Italy v Sweden; 3 June - Wales v Italy, Sweden v Denmark.
In Group B1, Northern Ireland started with a 2-0 loss in Poland and were heading for another defeat before two late goals from Simone Magill gave them a dramatic 3-2 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
After drawing 1-1 with Romania in Bucharest on 4 April, they won the reverse fixture at Windsor Park, completing a 1-0 victory courtesy of 18-year-old Kascie Weir's first international goal.
Republic of Ireland picked up their third win of the campaign, following up Friday's emphatic 4-0 win over Greece in Crete with a 2-1 victory over the same opponents in Dublin.
In February, Carla Ward's side beat Turkey 1-0 before being thrashed 4-0 in Slovenia.
Next matches in Group B1 and B2
Group B1: 30 May - Northern Ireland v Poland, Romania v Bosnia-Herzegovina; 3 June - Bosnia-Herzegovina v Northern Ireland, Poland v Romania.
Group B2: 30 May - Turkey v Republic of Ireland, Slovenia v Greece; 3 June -Republic of Ireland v Slovenia, Greece v Turkey.
How does the league work?
Teams were placed in each league based on their rankings at the end of the 2024 women's European qualifying league stage.
The four League A group winners will meet in two-legged semi-finals. The winners go into the final to decide who takes the Nations League title, while the losers go into a third-place play-off. Both the final and the third-place tie will also be played over two legs.
The teams who finish fourth in each League A group will be relegated to League B, and the League B group winners will be promoted.
Each group winner of League C will be promoted to League B, with the teams finishing at the bottom of League B, as well as two of the lowest ranked third-placed teams, dropping to League C.
Spain won the inaugural Women's Nations League title in 2024, claiming their second major trophy in six months.
How can teams qualify for Women's World Cup?
The group standings at the end of the Nations League determine which teams are placed in each league for the European qualifiers for the 2027 Women's World Cup.
There will be another draw in November 2025 to decide the groups within the three leagues.
Teams who finish in the top two in each League A group stay in the top league for the World Cup qualifiers.
The top four teams in League B will be promoted.
Third-placed teams from League A will have to play the second-placed teams from League B to decide which four teams claim the final League A spots.
At the end of the World Cup qualifiers, the four League A winners will qualify directly for the Women's World Cup. Other teams will be entered into the play-offs to claim the remaining spots.
When are the fixtures?
The Nations League group fixtures all take place before the 2025 Women's Euros, which starts on 2 July.
League phases
Matchday five and six: 30 May-3 June
Finals
Semi-finals (two legs): 22-28 October
Final/third-place play-off (two legs): 26 November-2 December