The Bulgarian women's national team made a significant leap in the FIVB world ranking after an excellent start to EuroVolley 2026.
The team led by Marcello Abbondanza defeated Ukraine 3-0 (25:23, 25:23, 25:20) in their first match of Group B in Brno, and the success brought Bulgaria 12.91 points for the world ranking.
Before the match, the Bulgarians had 136.02 points, and after the clean victory, their asset increased to 148.92 points. This allowed Bulgaria to climb by four positions – from 31st to 27th place in the world.
The national team is now only 0.36 points away from the 26th-placed team of Hungary, which has an asset of 149.28 points.
The victory proved to be particularly valuable for the ranking due to the significant difference between the positions of the two teams before the match. Ukraine was in 18th place in the world, but after the defeat by Bulgaria, they lost 12.91 points and also dropped by four positions – to 22nd place with 175.19 points.
For Bulgaria, the jump is important also in view of the upcoming matches at the European Championship, in which the national team will have the opportunity to continue accumulating points and improve their position in the world ranking.

photo:cev.eu