Ostrava, Czechia, will host the Men's CEV European Golden League 2025 Final Four. The event, scheduled for the first weekend of July, will bring together the top four teams from the group stage, which features 12 national teams. A major volleyball event returns to Ostrava, after the same city hosted the Men's CEV EuroVolley 2021, as well as the Women's European Golden League Final Four earlier this summer, solidifying Ostrava's position as a true "hub" of European volleyball.
"This is another diplomatic success for Czech volleyball, thanks to which the Czech national team has an excellent starting position in the fight for promotion in the world rankings, which ensures promotion to the prestigious Volleyball Nations League. Earlier this year, we organized the #EuroLeague Final Four for women, and for the Czech team, this was a springboard to the VNL. Now we are creating ideal conditions and maximum support for our men. As organizers, we have secured automatic participation for our team and expect support from full stands. Ostrava was the obvious choice in this regard," explains the President of the Czech Volleyball Federation, Marek Pakosta.

"The Czech Volleyball Federation has a rich legacy in organizing prestigious volleyball tournaments, which have demonstrated their organizational capabilities and attracted significant attention from volleyball fans and media, thus establishing Czechia as a thriving center for our sport," said Rok Sikiric, President of CEV.

The 2025 Men's European Golden League edition will begin in early June, and as in 2024, each team will play a total of six matches over three tournaments/weekends – thus playing at least one round in front of their home crowd. Ukraine, the current champion, will not return to defend their title, as they have qualified for the elite FIVB Volleyball Nations League 2025. In early summer 2024, they defeated Croatia to win the gold medal in the European Golden League. In the 2024 edition, the Czech Republic team finished third after losing to Ukraine in the semifinals before prevailing over Estonia 3-2 in the bronze medal match. As hosts of the Final Four, Czechia automatically qualifies for the event, and if they finish below fourth place at the end of the group stage, they will replace the team ranked fourth in the semifinals.

photos: Nikolay Varadinov, CEV andwww.cysnews.cz