Announcement of matches for the second round of the National League U-19
Results of the second round matches of the National League U-19
Results of the second round of the updated tournament.
Defeat in Lviv, a draw in the Kyiv derby, and high scoring — that's how the youth first division football Wednesday unfolded. We present to your attention the results of the second round matches of the National League U-19.
To view the tournament table click here.
Matches and their reviews can be found on the official YouTube channel of the competition.
What has changed in the U-19 league?
By the end of July, the UEFA approved an updated format for national and regional U-19 leagues. The reform's focus is to increase the competitiveness of youth competitions so that the composition of participants is formed based on sports principles and team strength rather than geographical or administrative decisions. Only under conditions of fair competition can young footballers fully grow. Similar changes have already been implemented in children's and girls' competitions.
U-19 National League. The tournament features 14 teams; the championship is held in two rounds under an "autumn-spring" system.
U-19 Regional League. Clubs and DYSHs are distributed into four groups of 8-10 teams based on a territorial principle. In the first stage, teams play two rounds within their groups; after that, group winners advance to the playoffs: semi-final pairs are drawn by lot, each encounter consists of two matches, and teams that lost in the semi-finals play for third place.
Exchange between leagues. The key idea of the reform is open sports rotation. A team that finishes 14th in the National League descends to the Regional League. The winner of the Regional League advances a class up — provided they meet the requirements of the regulations and have a professional or semi-professional certificate. Three more teams get a chance through tie-break matches: the second-place team from RL plays against the 13th team in NL, the third-place team plays against the 12th, and the fourth-place team plays against the 11th. Each pair conducts two matches; the winner is determined by their total sum. Thus, each participant of the Regional League has a real sporting path to the elite level.
Semi-professional status. Parallel with the new format, a semi-professional status is introduced for clubs, which is granted after certification. It allows for labor contracts to be made on part-time terms, legally cementing relationships between the club and player, and protecting club investments in youth training.
