The group stage of the Men's EuroVolley 2026 is nearing its final end. On Wednesday evening, Bulgaria put an impressive finish to the battle in Group B in Sofia with a victory over European champions Poland, while in Cluj-Napoca, Romania delivered one of the surprises of the day against France. In Tampere, Serbia came back from 0:2 against Denmark, and Estonia recorded their first victory in the championship.
GROUP B – SOFIA
Bulgaria inflicted Poland's first defeat at EuroVolley 2026
Our national team won the big clash with Poland 3:2 (20:25, 31:29, 25:23, 19:25, 20:18) in front of 13,000 spectators in "Arena 8888 Sofia". The match lasted 144 minutes, and Bulgaria inflicted the first defeat on the reigning European champion in the tournament.
Aleksandar Nikolov played an exceptional match with 36 points, and Bulgaria finished with 57% attack efficiency against 50% for Poland. The Poles had an advantage in blocks – 13:8, while both teams recorded 7 aces each and 46% positive reception.
The victory did not change the top two positions in the final standings. Poland finished first with 13 points, Ukraine is second with 12, and Bulgaria remained third with 11.
Final standings in Group B
| Place | Team | Matches | Wins | Losses | Sets | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Poland | 5 | 4 | 1 | 14:3 | 13 |
| 2 | Ukraine | 5 | 4 | 1 | 12:5 | 12 |
| 3 | Bulgaria | 5 | 4 | 1 | 13:6 | 11 |
| 4 | Portugal | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5:12 | 4 |
| 5 | North Macedonia | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3:12 | 3 |
| 6 | Israel | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5:14 | 2 |
Poland remained at the top thanks to their 13 points, despite the defeat by Bulgaria. Ukraine finished just one point behind the Poles, and our national team remained third with four wins from five matches and 11 points. Bulgaria enters the eliminations as the third team from the group and will face Germany in the round of sixteen. Poland will play Latvia, Ukraine – Romania, and France – Portugal. In the other match in Sofia, North Macedonia defeated Israel 3:0 (25:21, 25:23, 25:22) and recorded its first success in the championship. Nikola Georgiev finished with 20 points, and Stoyan Iliev added 14. For Israel, Shay Lieberman was the top scorer in the match with 21 points. The victory put North Macedonia ahead of Israel, but it was not enough for qualification. Fourth place and the last quota from Group B went to Portugal.
GROUP D – CLUJ-NAPOCA
Romania overturned France from 0:2 There was real drama in Cluj-Napoca. Romania was two sets down against France but achieved an impressive comeback and a 3:2 victory (16:25, 25:27, 25:20, 35:33, 15:12). The French had already secured first place in the group, and Andrea Giani gave other players a chance, but the hosts refused to give up. The fourth set, won by Romania 35:33, was particularly dramatic. Before that, Latvia defeated Turkey 3:1 (26:24, 23:25, 26:24, 25:16) and secured the last quota from Group D for the round of sixteen. Renars Pauls Jansons was the top scorer for the Latvians with 19 points.
Final standings in Group D
| Place | Team | Matches | Wins | Losses | Sets | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 5 | 4 | 1 | 14:4 | 13 |
| 2 | Germany | 5 | 4 | 1 | 12:7 | 11 |
| 3 | Romania | 5 | 3 | 2 | 12:10 | 9 |
| 4 | Latvia | 5 | 2 | 3 | 8:11 | 6 |
| 5 | Turkey | 5 | 1 | 4 | 6:12 | 3 |
| 6 | Switzerland | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5:13 | 3 |
France maintained first place despite the defeat by Romania, and Germany finished second, and they will be Bulgaria's opponent. The Romanians remained third, while the success over Turkey sent Latvia to fourth position.
GROUP C – TAMPERE
Serbia came back from 0:2, Estonia with first win. Denmark took the first two sets against Serbia, but lost the match 2:3 (25:19, 25:21, 21:25, 23:25, 14:16). However, the Danes did the most important job with the second set won and secured their place in the eliminations. Serbia made a full comeback from 0:2 and recorded their second five-set victory since the start of the championship in Tampere. Mads Kyed Jensen scored 29 points for Denmark, while the Serbs remained in the fight for a higher place before their last match with Belgium. Estonia achieved its first victory at EuroVolley 2026, after defeating the Netherlands 3:1 (27:25, 25:22, 18:25, 25:23). Two consecutive aces by Timo Lõhmus at 22:22 in the fourth set proved crucial for the success.
Standings in Group C before the last two matches
| Place | Team | Matches | Wins | Losses | Sets | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finland | 4 | 4 | 0 | 12:4 | 10 |
| 2 | Belgium | 4 | 3 | 1 | 11:6 | 10 |
| 3 | Serbia | 4 | 3 | 1 | 9:8 | 7 |
| 4 | Denmark | 5 | 2 | 3 | 9:9 | 7 |
| 5 | Estonia | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5:10 | 3 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 5 | 0 | 5 | 6:15 | 2 |
The four teams for the eliminations are already clear – Finland, Belgium, Serbia, and Denmark. Estonia can reach a maximum of 6 points and cannot displace the Danes, who finished with 7. Today's two matches will determine the final distribution of the top three positions.
GROUP A – MODENA
Slovenia moved into second place before the clash with Italy. Slovenia defeated the Czech Republic 3:1 (24:26, 25:13, 27:25, 25:23) and climbed to second place before today's last match against Italy. Nik Mujanovic was the top scorer with 21 points, and Rok Mozic added 17. The Czech Republic won the first set, but Slovenia responded emphatically and turned the match around. Sweden concluded its participation with its first victory – 3:1 (19:25, 25:23, 25:21, 25:19) against Slovakia. Jakob Link was the top scorer for the winners with 16 points, while Erik Gulak scored 19 for Slovakia.
Standings in Group A before the last two matches
| Place | Team | Matches | Wins | Losses | Sets | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italy | 4 | 4 | 0 | 12:2 | 12 |
| 2 | Slovenia | 4 | 3 | 1 | 10:4 | 9 |
| 3 | Czech Republic | 5 | 3 | 2 | 11:9 | 8 |
| 4 | Greece | 4 | 2 | 2 | 7:8 | 6 |
| 5 | Sweden | 5 | 1 | 4 | 6:13 | 4 |
| 6 | Slovakia | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2:12 | 0 |
Italy, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Greece are already assured of a place in the knockout stage. Italy enters the final day undefeated, and the direct clash with Slovenia will be decisive for the final standings at the top of the group.
PROGRAM FOR SEPTEMBER 17
Group A – Modena
16:00 – Slovakia – Greece
21:05 – Italy – Slovenia
Group C – Tampere
17:00 – Serbia – Belgium
20:00 – Finland – Estonia
After these four matches, the group stage of EuroVolley 2026 will conclude, and the final standings in Groups A and C will become clear.
