Scotland begin their Nations League campaign in Ljubljana under new head coach Sebastien Pocognoli, a former Belgium defender who replaced Steve Clarke following Scotland's disappointing World Cup performance. Pocognoli has implemented significant changes, introducing eight uncapped players to the squad and refreshing the team with fifteen players who did not feature at the World Cup. Slovenia, managed by Bostjan Cesar in his fourth match in charge, have never defeated Scotland in five previous encounters but have drawn their last two meetings.

The match carries historical significance given Scotland's previous visit to Slovenia in October 2017, when a 2-2 draw eliminated them from Russia 2018 World Cup qualifying. Despite that setback, Scotland have qualified for three major tournaments since and are nearly assured of progression to Euro 2028 before this fixture. Pocognoli faces the challenge of guiding Scotland beyond the group stage in major tournaments, a hurdle they have historically struggled to overcome. Kick-off at Stadion Stozice is at 2pm BST.