Magic Game: Belgium – Israel

Belgium will play their first match in the 2024-2025 Nations League on Friday, September 6, against Israel. The Red Devils will need to quickly secure points if they want to ensure a group victory or at least a second-place finish, as their other opponents in the group are France and Italy.

Nations League

This biennial tournament is being held for the fourth time, six years after the first edition in 2018. In the Nations League, 54 UEFA members compete against each other, divided into four leagues based on their international performances. Within these leagues, they are further split into groups, with each country playing both home and away matches against the teams in their group.

After the group stage, teams follow a new path. The first and second place teams in the groups in League A qualify for the quarterfinals, where they will play playoffs to determine who advances to the final round. There will also be playoffs for promotion and relegation between all leagues. The quarterfinals start on March 20, the final round on June 4. The final is scheduled for June 8, 2025.

Belgium – Israel

Belgium and Israel have only played against each other twice in recent history, both in 2015 for the 2016 European Championship in France. Belgium won both matches, first 0-1 and then 3-1. Although there haven’t been many encounters between the two, it’s clear that Belgium is more likely to win this match as well. These odds are also reflected in the FIFA World Ranking: Belgium is in 6th place, while Israel is only in 78th place.

There are also some concerns about this match, as it was decided in June that this match, a home game for the Belgians, would not take place at the King Baudouin Stadium. The Brussels authorities deemed it too dangerous. Additionally, the decision on the Palestinian request to suspend the Israeli team from international football was temporarily postponed.

Belgium

The Red Devils narrowly advanced to the next round of the European Championship, where they immediately faced France. It wasn’t a particularly successful tournament for the Belgians in Germany, but perhaps they can draw some motivation from that for the Nations League. Belgium’s best result in the Nations League so far was the third-place play-off in the 2020-2021 edition, where they just missed out against Italy. Last year, the Belgians achieved their worst result to date, finishing in 7th place.

A few years ago, Belgium was still ranked first in the world, but due to these disappointing results, they have dropped to 6th place. If the Red Devils want to climb back up the rankings, a good result in this Nations League would certainly help. As mentioned earlier, they will need these points, because with France and Italy as opponents, it will be very difficult otherwise.

Coach Domenico Tedesco has also surprised with his squad selection: without Romelu Lukaku, Leandro Trossard, Yannick Carrasco, and Axel Witsel. The non-selection of Trossard and Carrasco was explained as an “opportunity to test new faces,” while Lukaku reportedly asked to be left out. He had a challenging transfer summer and wants to focus first on his start with his new club, Napoli. Kevin De Bruyne will be present, as well as newcomers Julien Duranville and Arne Engels.

Israel

Israel did not qualify for the European Championship in Germany. They played in the qualifiers against teams like Switzerland and Romania but were not strong enough. They did manage to play some matches afterward against Hungary and Belarus, but by September, it will have been three months since then. It is therefore uncertain at what level this Israel team will perform. Last year, Israel achieved their best finish to date, ending in 17th place.

In the FIFA World Ranking, Israel is only in 78th place, much lower than their best ranking ever, which they achieved in 2008. After a series of good results, they were then ranked 15th. A good result in this Nations League would be very helpful for them as well.

The coach of the Israeli team is Ran Ben Shimon. He himself played for the national team for 8 years and was appointed as head coach in May of this year. In that short time, he led the team to a loss against Hungary and a victory against Belarus.

Magic Betting Live

Want to make the Nations League even more exciting? Check out the Magic Betting App or visit the website www.magicbetting.be for the best online sports betting. Be sure to also check out the various promotional offers. Take your chance and win!