There are matches where the audience just watches. And there are those where the stands can become part of the game. Tonight at 7:00 PM, Bulgaria will face the reigning European champion Poland in "Arena 8888", and against one of the strongest teams in the world, our national players will need every bit of energy that can come from the stands.
It doesn't matter where the person in the seat came from. Tonight, there are only three colors – white, green, and red.
One hall. One team. One Bulgaria.
Poland is the favorite. There's no point in hiding that. Nikola Grbic's team showed just hours ago what happens when they find their rhythm. Ukraine entered the match with four consecutive wins, including the one against Bulgaria, but the European champions decisively stopped them with a 3:0 (25:20, 25:13, 25:22) victory. The Poles took an 8:1 lead early on, and in the first set, they attacked with 65% success rate against Ukraine's 33%.
Tonight, however, Bulgaria has something Ukraine didn't – the full support of the stands.
The energy must descend from the stands to the court.
Just two days ago against Israel, we saw how quickly "Arena 8888" can turn into a boiling cauldron. After the controversial call by the first referee Dominga Lot, the tension sharply increased, and the reaction from the stands was deafening.
Now, this energy must be directed where it can truly help – towards the Bulgarian volleyball players.
Applause after every saved ball. Noise before every Polish serve. Support after every Bulgarian mistake.
Especially after a mistake.
Because against a team like Poland, there will almost inevitably be moments when the opponent goes on a run. The question is how Bulgaria will react to it and whether our national players will then feel the thousands in the stands behind them.

This hall remembers what full stands mean.
One of the strongest memories from the then completely full "Arena Armeec" takes us back to EuroVolley 2015. On October 17, 12,500 spectators filled the hall for the Bulgaria - France semi-final. Our national team took a 2:0 lead, but the future European champion managed to turn the match around to 2:3 (25:18, 25:22, 24:26, 21:25, 12:15).
Among those 12,500 people was an 11-year-old boy –Aleksandar Nikolov.

Eleven years later, Alex is no longer watching Bulgaria from the stands. Tonight, he will be down on the court, and thousands of children will be watching him from those very stands.
And perhaps this is precisely one of the most beautiful aspects of such volleyball evenings. No one knows which of the children who came today with the Bulgarian flag will not be on the other side of the billboards in about ten years.
Therefore, tonight the hall must once again be as the 11-year-old Alex saw it then.Full. Loud. Bulgarian.

2012 – when "Arena Armeec" was boiling
The Poles know very well what it means to play against Bulgaria in this hall. So does Vlado Nikolov, who was a participant in this drama.

On July 7, 2012, when it was still called "Arena Armeec", Bulgaria and Poland met in the semi-finals of the World League. 13,000 spectators filled the stands, and the atmosphere was heated to the limit.
The Polish "Przegląd Sportowy" described the huge noise and boos that accompanied the match. However, Poland endured and won 3:0 (25:23, 25:20, 25:18). The first referee was the Dutchman Frans Loderus, and the second was the Japanese Akihiko Tano. It was the scandalous refereeing of the man from the "Low Countries" that became an additional reason for the escalation of emotions in the hall.

The tension did not end with the last point. After the match, Zbigniew Bartman reacted sharply against the behavior of some of the Bulgarian audience and the line judges, using the offensive term "pastuchy" – "shepherds", and the athletes themselves were quite scared.

Fourteen years later, no one needs insults, thrown objects, or crossing the line.
But from that evening, there is something worth bringing back –the deafening support for Bulgaria.
Let it be noisy. Let it be difficult for the opponent to communicate. With every point, let it be felt who the host is.
Everything else must remain on the court.
Leon, Semeniuk, and Fornal – the storm comes from the serve
If there is one element that Bulgaria must be prepared for from the very first ball, it is the Polish serve.
Wilfredo Leon, Kamil Semeniuk, and Tomasz Fornal give Nikola Grbić enormous power from the serve. Against Ukraine, the warning came in the first set – Leon scored three aces, and Poland took an 8:1 lead.

Here, Bulgaria must endure.
Not every reception needs to be perfect. It is necessary for the ball to stay in play and for Simeon Nikolov to have enough opportunities to organize the attack. The most dangerous scenario is two bad receptions leading to a third, then to a rushed attack, and in a minute, a two-point difference becoming five or six.
And that's when the stands will be most needed.
Komenda and the 217-centimeter threat in the middle
The other big task for Bulgaria is Marcin Komenda.
Alex Grozdanov knows him perfectly – they are teammates at BOGDANKA LUK Lublin. With a good reception, Komenda can use Poland's entire arsenal, and that's when the task for the Bulgarian block becomes extremely difficult.
Bartłomiej Lemański, 217 centimeters tall, deserves special attention.
With a perfect first pass, such a middle blocker is a huge threat. Therefore, one of the main tasks of the Bulgarian serve will be to keep Komenda away from the net. The fewer opportunities he has to look for the middles, the more predictable the Polish attack will be for our block.

Ten years back – a tough streak, broken in Gdańsk
A look at the last decade shows a significant Polish advantage.
In 2016, Poland won in the World League with 3:1 (19:25, 25:19, 25:17, 25:20). On June 9, 2017, Bulgaria responded with a dramatic 3:2 (25:16, 20:25, 19:25, 25:23, 16:14).
After that, the long Polish streak began. In 2018, Poland won twice with 3:1 – in the VNL and at the World Championship. This was followed by 3:1 in the VNL in 2019 and 3:0 in 2021.
Polish dominance continued in the following seasons, untilJuly 19, 2025, and Gdańsk. And then the first referee was again Juraj Mokrý.

In front of the Polish crowd in "Ergo Arena", Bulgaria did what it hadn't done since 2017 – it defeated Poland. And it did so after five sets – 3:2 (17:25, 25:22, 25:23, 27:29, 15:11). And the match point was scored by Moni Nikolov with an ace, and that was after he had suffered an injury 10 days earlier in the match against Turkey in Burgas.
This remains the last Bulgarian victory over the Poles.

2026: two matches, two losses, but tonight the story is different
This year, Bulgaria and Poland have already met twice, and both matches ended with Polish victories.
The first was at the "Silesia Cup", and the second – on July 15 in the last tournament of the preliminary phase of the VNL in Chicago. There, Poland won 3:0 (25:19, 25:17, 25:17).
Tonight marks the third clash of the year.
But this time Bulgaria is at home.
Juraj Mokrý on the stand, Dominga Lot returns as second referee
And the referee appointment adds another interesting detail to the match.
The first referee will be the Slovakian Juraj Mokry – one of the most authoritative international referees and undoubtedly among the leading referees in world volleyball. Mokry has been part of the refereeing crews at the Olympic tournaments in Tokyo and Paris, and CEV has also used him as an example for young international referees, describing him and the Italian Simone Santi as exceptionally successful international referees and representatives of the best in the profession.
At this European Championship alone, Mokry has already officiated as first referee for Bulgaria – Portugal, was second referee for Bulgaria – Ukraine, and last night was also second referee for Poland – Ukraine.
The second referee tonight will be Dominga Lot – the same Italian who was the first referee for Bulgaria – Israel and showed a yellow card to Aleksandar Nikolov in one of the most tense moments of the match.

Lot has long established herself at the highest level in Italian men's volleyball. She has been an international referee since 2017, in 2021 she became the first woman to be appointed for a final in the Italian men's SuperLega, and this season she continues to regularly officiate matches in the championship. For the Final Four of the Italian Cup in February, she was among the six selected referees, having officiated 11 SuperLega matches this season alone before the tournament.
Poland is the favorite. But the first ball will be at 0:0.
There's no need to close our eyes. Bulgaria faces the current European champion – a team with immense power in serving, physicality, experience, and squad depth.
But Gdansk last summer showed something important – this opponent can be defeated.
For Bulgaria, the fine line tonight will be psychological.
The team must be inspired, but not over-wound. Aggressive, but patient. To take risks when the situation demands it, but not to start chasing the impossible after every lost point.
And most importantly – not to allow a run by Leon, Semeniuk, or Fornal to turn a two-point deficit into six.
And the stands have their role.

Support at 24:24.
Support at 10:5.
But support most strongly at 5:10.

Because that's exactly when the national team needs to hear what stands behind it the most.
Not one city.
One Bulgaria!
Bulgaria – Poland, tonight at 7:00 PM in "Arena 8888".
Poland comes as the favorite.
Bulgaria plays as the host.
And when the first whistle blows, everything starts from 0:0.

photos: Nikolay Varadinov