England will take on Belgium, Denmark and Iceland in the next edition of the Uefa Nations League which begins in September this year.
Having won their group ahead of Spain and Croatia in the inaugural running, the value of the new competition was immediately apparent for the Three Lions as they were given an alternative to routine qualifying matches.
"The best way to improve is to play the best teams,” Gareth Southgate told Sky Sports following the draw.
“We got very proficient in the European qualifiers at beating teams who defended deep, and managed to score a lot of goals. But you are only developing one part of your game in those tests.
"These matches will be a greater test of our all-round game."
The Nations League will provide the warm-up to the 2022 World Cup qualifiers but unlike the recent Euro 2020 qualifiers where some nations have a second bite at making the finals, the two competitions will be kept separate.