In a festive atmosphere at the Castello Normanno-Svevo in Bari, the 24 qualified teams for the CEV EuroVolley 2026 Men gathered to discover the fate of their preliminary round opponents. Europe’s volleyball elite found out the outcome of the draw, which marked the official beginning of their journey toward continental glory.
The Drawing of Lots set the stage for the CEV EuroVolley 2026 Men. With a packed calendar across iconic host cities in Italy, Bulgaria, Finland, and Romania, and world-class teams ready to embark on their quest for supremacy, the matchups already promise plenty of drama.
The four hosts had the prerogative to choose one opponent and assign them to their pools — with Italy choosing to play against Sweden, North Macedonia being sent to Pool B to face Bulgaria, Estonia meeting Finland in Pool C, while Romania decided to play in Cluj-Napoca against Latvia in Pool D.
Pool A looks to provide fireworks, as reigning World Champions Italy are due to face the bronze medallists of the previous edition, Slovenia, as well as the semi-finalists of the 2025 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship, Czechia. Completing the pool are Sweden, Greece, and Slovakia.
The title holders, Poland, were drawn into Pool B, where they will be heavy favourites, facing the silver medallists of the 2025 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship, Bulgaria, along with North Macedonia, Ukraine, Portugal, and Israel.
Pool C also looks well-balanced, as co-hosts Finland are due to face Estonia, Serbia, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Denmark.
Pool D features reigning Olympic champions France, who will face Romania, Germany, Türkiye, Switzerland, and Latvia.
The CEV EuroVolley 2026 will take place between 9 and 26 September in Napoli, Turin, Modena, and Milan (Italy), Varna (Bulgaria), Tampere (Finland), and Cluj-Napoca (Romania).
The top four teams in each pool will progress to the Round of 16, while the last two teams — eight in total — will be eliminated and will head home.
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