So Ireland's disastrous UEFA Nations League campaign has finally come to a close, drawing the curtains on one of the most disappointing years in recent memory. If you already miss the misery, don't worry, as the Euro 2020 qualifying campaign will be underway before you know it. But when is the Euro 2020 qualifying draw?
When Is The Euro 2020 Qualifying Draw?
As one of the host cities in the revamped continent-wide tournament, Dublin has been chosen as the location for the draw. The Euro 2020 qualifying draw is taking place in Dublin's Convention Centre on December 2nd at 11am.
There the 55 association members will learn fate for the qualifiers, which will take place from March 2019-March 2020.
What Is The Format Of The Draw?
The 55 nations will be divided into six pots, with a team being placed into each group. There will be five groups of five teams (A-E) and five groups of six teams (F-J).
The four participants in the UEFA Nations League Finals (England, Holland, Portugal and Switzerland) will be placed in groups A-D. This ensures that they will only play eight qualifying matches, as the finals clashes with the opening round of qualifying games.
In order to give all 12 Euro 2020 host nations a chance of qualifying, a maximum of two will be placed in each group. For example, this means that Ireland cannot be drawn in the same group as both Spain and Azerbaijan, as both of these are also host nations.
What Pot Will Ireland Be In?
After the disastrous Nations League campaign, the Republic of Ireland will be placed in Pot 3 alongside the likes of Finland and Slovakia.
This, in theory, would mean that they receive a tougher draw than teams in Pot 1 or 2.
Who Qualifies From The Groups?
The top two teams in each group will automatically qualify for Euro 2020. This will fill 20 of the 24 available spots at the finals.
The final four spots will be filled via the UEFA Nations League play-offs which will take place next year. The play-off system can be generously described as complicated, and we have given an overview of the process here.
Essentially, the play-offs give some teams who have failed to finish in the top two in their qualifying group one final chance at qualification.
The Seedings In Full
The seedings will be fully decided after tonight's games, but this is the way things look at the moment.
UNL Pot (Pot 1)
England, Portugal, Switzerland, Netherlands
Pot 1
Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Croatia, Germany/Poland
Pot 2
Germany/Poland, Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Denmark, Iceland, Russia, Sweden, Ukraine, Wales, Czech Republic
Pot 3
Slovakia, Finland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Serbia, Turkey, Norway
Pot 3 or 4
Bulgaria, Hungary, Israel, Romania, Scotland
Pot 4
Albania, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Lithuania, Montenegro, Slovenia, Georgia
Pot 5
Belarus, Kosovo, Macedonia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Gibraltar
Pot 5 or 6
Faroe Islands, Malta
Pot 6
Latvia, Liechtenstein, Andorra, San Marino
