Olympic qualification on line in Nations League

England – the only team who could qualify Team GB for the Olympics – finished behind the Netherlands on goal difference despite thrashing Scotland 6-0 in their final group game

Two spots at this summer’s Olympics are up for grabs as the Women’s Nations League enters the finals.

France qualify as hosts and will be joined in Paris by two of Spain, the Netherlands and Germany.

Great Britain are out of the running after England finished second behind the Netherlands in their group.

Meanwhile, Northern Ireland are among the teams competing in play-offs to decide their Euro 2025 qualifying league.

Qualifying for the tournament in Switzerland begins in April, with the draw taking place on 5 March.

With a busy international break coming up, BBC Sport looks at who can qualify for the Olympics, the importance of the Nations League play-offs, and how teams can reach Euro 2025.

Who can secure a spot at Paris 2024?

February sees the inaugural Women’s Nations League finals take place, and only one of the four finalists will fall short of booking a ticket to the Olympics.

Tournament hosts France play Germany in their semi-final, while the Netherlands travel to face World Cup winners Spain.

Both semi-finals take place at 20:00 GMT on Friday.

Reaching the final is the certain way to earn an Olympics berth, however automatically qualified France being in the final four offers another chance.

The two best-performing teams progress, so should France reach the final then the winner of the third-place play-off will also reach the Olympics.

Play-offs start on Friday

Northern Ireland finished second-bottom of their group in League B and therefore are one of the teams taking part in promotion/relegation play-offs.

They face Montenegro over two legs to try to avoid relegation, with games on Friday, 23 February (13:00) and Tuesday, 27 February (19:00).

Nations League play-offs are important for Euro 2025 qualifying, with the league system being used to decide the 15 nations joining hosts Switzerland.

Four teams are yet to be decided for League A, eight are still to be confirmed for League B, while there are three spots left in League C.

Teams in League A/League B play-offs: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sweden, Serbia, Iceland, Hungary, Belgium, Croatia, Norway.

Teams in League B/League C play-offs: Montenegro, Northern Ireland, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Latvia, Slovakia.

How does Euro 2025 qualification work?

Qualification for next year’s tournament in Switzerland is similar to the Nations League, with the three leagues being used and each being split into groups.

The groups will be decided at next month’s draw on 5 March, while qualification takes place between April and December.

Reaching the Euros is easiest for those in League A, with the top two teams from each of the four groups gaining places.

That still leaves seven teams to be decided to make up the 16 who will join Switzerland, with the final spots up for grabs via play-offs.

They take place in two rounds, with the first being split into two paths.

In one path, third and fourth-placed teams from League A play the five League C group winners and the league’s three best runners-up.

In the other, the four League B group winners and two best runners-up face the two other League B runners up and the four third-placed teams.

The 14 teams then meet in the second round, with the seven highest-ranked teams being seeded in the draw, and the winners progressing to the finals.

Confirmed League A teams: France, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Austria, Denmark, England, Italy, Czech Republic, Finland, Poland, Republic of Ireland.

Confirmed League B teams: Portugal, Scotland, Switzerland, Wales, Azerbaijan, Israel, Kosovo, Malta, Turkey.

Confirmed League C teams: Albania, Belarus, Greece, Romania, Slovenia, Estonia, Lithuania, Andorra, Armenia, Cyprus, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Moldova, North Macedonia.