Publication date: 21 Jul 2023
About the Women’s European Volleyball Championship
The Women’s European Volleyball Championship is a biennial international volleyball tournament for women’s national teams in Europe. The tournament is held under the auspices of the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV). Italy is the reigning champion team, defending its title for the third time. A similar event among men is called the Men’s European Volleyball Championship. The men’s and women’s championships are held in the same year, around the same time.
2026 Women’s European Volleyball Championship
The 34th European Women’s Volleyball Championship will be held in 2026 from August 15 to September 3. The competition will be held in a multi-format – in four European countries. This is the fourth tournament in a row held according to this format, which allows for more fans to be involved and the competition to be accessible to a wider audience.
Cities and countries hosting EuroVolley 2026:
- Baku (Azerbaijan)
- Ankara (Turkey)
- Brno (Czech Republic)
- Gothenburg (Sweden)
These cities will host the group stages and the decisive matches. All countries have experience of hosting major international tournaments and have modern sports arenas.
Who will take part?
The tournament is expected to involve 24 national teams of CEV member countries. Teams will be divided into groups, the qualifying matches will be held in 2025. The host countries receive automatic qualification.
Main favorites of the championship are:
- Italy — the 2021 European champion with bright young players;
- Serbia — one of the most titled women’s teams in Europe in recent years;
- Turkey — a team that is consistently among the top three;
- The Netherlands and Poland — teams demonstrating a high level of preparation;
- Belgium and Germany — teams capable of springing surprises.
History of the Women’s European Volleyball Championship
The first Women’s European Volleyball Championship was organized in 1947 in Prague. At that time, the Czechoslovak national team earned the gold medal. Until 1973, volleyball tournaments were run by the European Volleyball Commission. In most cases, the tournaments were held in halls, except in 1949, 1950, 1955 and 1958. During these years, the tournaments were played on outdoor courts. Previously, the European Championships were conducted every 4 years, but since 1975, they have been held every two years, on odd-numbered years.
In the history of the tournament, it has been attended by teams from 40 countries. 9 of them became the winner of the tournament.
The national team of the Soviet Union won 7 consecutive titles from 1958 to 1979.
After the collapse of the USSR, the Russian national team continued to be the leader in Europe. There are 19 victories on the account of our country’s team (13 of them from the USSR team). Next on the list are Italy and Serbia, they have 3 gold medals each. Poland and East Germany have 2 victories each.
Results of the previous Women’s European Volleyball Championships
| The year | Venue | Results/ Place |
| 2023 | Belgium, Germany, Italy, Estonia | 1st place – Turkey
2nd place – Serbia 3rd place –Netherlands |
| 2021 | Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania | 1st place – Italy
2nd place – Serbia 3rd place – Turkey |
| 2019 | Turkey, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia | 1st place – Serbia
2nd place – Turkey 3rd place – Italy |
2028 Women’s European Volleybаll Championship
There is currently no information available for the next Women’s European Volleyball Championship.
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