UEFA Approves Nations League to Replace Most International Friendlies

International football is officially set to undergo a major facelift in 2018 and beyond, as UEFA announced Thursday it has approved the final format for the new Nations League.      

According to UEFA, the new competition, which will replace most European friendly matches, will be broken into four groups of three or four teams. Much like many domestic leagues, teams will be promoted and relegated within the different divisions based on performance. 

An entire list of rules, competition structure and other details can be found at the above link. As the Daily Telegraph's Ben Rumsby joked, it's a bit exhaustive:

Among the major takeaways, there will be a winning country every odd year, determined by a Final Four playoff between each of the group winners. Also, the Nations League will feature qualification for Euro 2020 and other succeeding major international tournaments, with the qualifying rules subject to adaptation based on the number of available spots. 

While the setup is still just about as clear as mud, the premise is enticing. We'll have to wait to see the effect it has on Euro 2020, but the removal of friendlies for more competitive fixtures is certainly an intriguing idea in theory. 

If everything runs smoothly—which is still a large "if" at this point—it will be interesting to see if any other confederations adopt a similar plan.