The Bulgarian Women's U20 national team is ready for its first major test on the road to the 2027 European Championship. Denislav Dimitrov's selection will participate in the first round of the European qualifiers, which will take place in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, from August 19 to 23, 2026. The tournament is also a Balkan Championship in this age category. Mostar's hosting and the period of the competition have been confirmed by the Balkan Volleyball Association and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Bulgaria is in a group with Turkey, Russia, and Serbia, and the match against the Russians is of particular interest. It will be among the first official international matches for a Russian national team at the youth level since the country's re-admission to the CEV calendar. The Bulgarian Volleyball Federation also defines the participation as the first for the 'Sbornaya' since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.
Bulgaria starts against Turkey, then comes Russia
Bulgaria's first opponent in Mostar will be Turkey. The match is on August 19 at 3:30 PM Bulgarian time. A day later comes the highly anticipated clash with Russia – August 20 at 1:00 PM Bulgarian time. The group stage for our team concludes on August 21 at 1:00 PM against Serbia. The indicated times are Bulgarian time, with Bulgaria being one hour ahead of Mostar during this period.
Bulgaria's schedule in the group:
August 19, 3:30 PM: Turkey – Bulgaria
August 20, 1:00 PM: Bulgaria – Russia
August 21, 1:00 PM: Serbia – Bulgaria
After the completion of the group stage, the tournament continues on August 22 and 23 with matches for place distribution. Thus, Bulgaria will play three matches on three consecutive days at the beginning of the competition.
Russia returns, but there is a special condition for the quota
Russia's presence makes the tournament in Mostar different from a qualification perspective. A decision by the CEV Board on May 16, 2026, changes the way Russia and Belarus participate in the first qualification round. The two teams have been moved from their previous zonal association for the purposes of the qualification system.
The most important thing is that Russia's participation will not deprive the best representative of the Balkan Volleyball Association of a direct quota for the European Championship.
According to the official CEV regulations, if Russia or Belarus wins the BVA tournament, the winner and the highest-ranked team from the BVA member countries will qualify directly for the final phase. This means that if Russia finishes first in Mostar, two direct quotas will be awarded – one for Russia and one for the highest-ranked team from the Balkan Association.
This clarification is important because Russia participates fully in the sports competition and the results of its matches are significant for the tournament, but its potential first place does not take away the foreseen direct quota for the BVA.
The Bulgarian Volleyball Federation also confirms this regulation – the winner of the zonal qualification qualifies for EuroVolley, and if that is Russia, the highest-ranked representative of the Balkan Association also gets a spot in the finals.
The final phase of the Women's U20 European Championship will be held in Italy and Malta from July 8 to 17, 2027.
14 volleyball players in Bulgaria's squad
For the tournament in Mostar, Bulgaria will rely on 14 players, announced in the final squad:
Setters: Liana Vasileva, Ivayla Rikova
Middle blockers: Antonia Stanislavova, Adriana Aleksieva, Tsvetomira Velcheva, Elitsa Georgieva
Outside Hitters: Katerina Popova, Siyana Genduzova, Edna Todorova, Nikol Okoro
Opposites: Elisaveta Sarieva, Bozhidara Ivanova
Liberos: Maria-Magdalena Nedyalkova, Nikol Stefanova
Even at the beginning of the preparation, coach Denislav Dimitrov set a clear goal for the team – qualification for the European Championship. He then admitted that information about Russia was limited, with the staff primarily having footage from control matches of the Russian team.
