The draw for the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League has taken place with England drawn in the same group as one of their biggest rivals.
Gareth Southgate's side suffered a humiliating relegation to the second tier of the competition after finishing bottom of their group in the 2022/23 edition.
They failed to win a single game in a group which also included Italy, Hungary and Germany.
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As a result, England were placed in League B for the 2024/25 competition - despite being the current bookmakers' favourites to win Euro 2024 this summer.
The draw for the Nations League took place in Paris, France on Thursday night and saw England drawn alongside the Republic of Ireland, Finland and Greece in Group B2.
England last played Ireland in a friendly at Wembley in 2020, with Harry Maguire, Jadon Sancho and Dominic Calvert-Lewin scoring in a 3-0 win for the home side.
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Their last competitive meeting came all the way back in 1991, a 1-1 draw at Wembley during qualifying for Euro 1992.
In the current edition of the Nations League, each team in Leagues A, B and C will play two group games in September, two in October and two in November 2024.
The four teams that win their groups in League A will then compete in the Nations League finals in June 2025.
Spain are the defending champions, having beaten Croatia in the 2023 final.
Nations League draw in full
League A
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Group A1: Croatia, Portugal, Poland, Scotland
Group A2: Italy, Belgium, France, Israel
Group A3: Netherlands, Hungary, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group A4: Spain, Denmark, Switzerland, Serbia
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League B
Group B1: Czechia, Ukraine, Albania, Georgia
Group B2: England, Finland, Republic of Ireland, Greece
Group B3: Austria, Norway, Slovenia, Kazakhstan
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Group B4: Wales, Iceland, Montenegro, Turkey
League C
Group C1: Sweden, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Estonia
Group C2: Romania, Kosovo, Cyprus, Lithuania/Gibraltar
Group C3: Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Northern Ireland, Belarus
Group C4: Armenia, Faroe Islands, North Macedonia, Latvia
League D
Group D1: Lithuania/Gibraltar, San Marino, Liechtenstein
Group D2: Moldova, Malta, Andorra
Topics: England, UEFA Nations League, Football
Rory O'Callaghan