Nations League: Why should Scotland fans care about Thursday’s draw?

Even eight years after its launch, the competition does not have the appeal of its counterparts, but it remains an important part of the international calendar, especially for Scotland.

Head coach Clark has repeatedly spoken about how his players need to face tough opposition to continue improving.

This time, they won’t be playing Europe’s elite, but competitive matches against teams of similar level represent a good test and solid preparation for the next set of European Championship qualifiers.

The promotion brings prestigious, glamorous games next time around and prize money, but arguably the real rewards come in how the successful campaign prepares Scotland for the future.

Rankings for playoff and finals campaigns are always complicated, but there is one simple truth that applies to them all. Winning matches moves a team up the rankings and into a better position – and winning competitive matches is more valuable than winning friendly matches.

There is also the importance of a good Nations League as a lifeline to reaching the grand finals. Four teams who failed to qualify for the World Cup directly were given a second chance through the qualifiers due to their record in the Nations League.

And let’s not forget that Scotland’s long exit from grand finals was ended by a lifeline in the Home Nations League – the sentiment of the play-off win in Serbia that secured a place at Euro 2020 was only made possible by a strong campaign.

It should not be the case that the national team needs a similar chance of reaching Euro 2028, but a daunting set of circumstances could arise that make UEFA Nations League success essential.

As co-hosts of the tournament, the idea of ​​Scotland not reaching the finals and seeing fans of other nations celebrating at Hampden is unthinkable.

However, with four nations hosting the finals, Scotland, England, Wales and the Republic of Ireland must contest the qualifying campaign.

In an ideal world, the national team would succeed there and secure their place, with three group matches at Hampden guaranteed.

UEFA allocated two places to the host countries that failed to qualify in an attempt to ensure that the four countries are properly present in the tournament.

However, if more than two of the four teams fail to qualify automatically, it will come down to the qualifying seeding, and Scotland could miss out entirely.

In this particular case, a place in the UEFA Nations League play-off would be fantastic.