Montenegro Qualifies for EuroVolley 2026 as Group Winners After Historic Victory Over Latvia

Montenegro – Latvia 3–1 (20–25, 25–20, 25–23, 25–19)

Montenegro’s women’s national volleyball team secured a historic qualification for the 2026 European Championship after defeating Latvia 3–1 in their final Group D match. With this win, Montenegro topped the group with three victories— including two over Bosnia and Herzegovina — and just one narrow 3–2 loss to Latvia earlier in Jelgava.

The decisive match in Podgorica began with Latvia in control, taking the opening set 25–20, thanks to strong serving by Karmen Struka. Montenegro struggled to find rhythm and only briefly managed to equalize before Latvia pulled ahead.

Montenegro turned the momentum in their favor in the second set. After falling behind 17–14, they mounted a comeback led by Marija Šušić’s strong serving and impactful substitutions — Nevena Vukčević and Tijana Tvrdišić. Key contributions from Saška Đurović and Nikoleta Perović helped the home team close out the set 25–20.

In a dramatic third set, Montenegro maintained a slim lead for most of the set but had to rally again late. The introduction of Gordana Madžgalj proved decisive — her two service aces, including one on set point, clinched a 25–23 win and gave Montenegro a 2–1 advantage.

The fourth set was Montenegro’s most commanding. They quickly jumped to a 5–1 lead and kept control throughout. Despite a brief Latvian run, head coach Jovo Caković’s timeout helped the team regroup and finish strong with a 6–1 run, sealing both the match and first place in the group.

Montenegro now looks ahead to EuroVolley 2026, to be held August 21 – September 6, 2026 in Azerbaijan, Czech Republic, Sweden, and Turkey, with host cities Baku, Brno, Gothenburg, and Ankara.

Finland’s Narrow Victory Over Switzerland Not Enough for EuroVolley 2026 Spot

Switzerland – Finland 2–3 (19–25, 25–15, 25–21, 22–25, 14–16)

Finland’s women’s national volleyball team concluded their EuroVolley qualification campaign with a 3–2 win over Switzerland in Winterthur — a result that, unfortunately, wasn’t enough to earn them a place in the 2026 European Championship finals.

To qualify, Finland needed to win by at least 3–1. Dropping two sets proved crucial, and despite their victory, they were left hoping for late upsets from Denmark or Georgia — which never came.

Germany topped Group A with 9 points and advanced to the finals. Finland finished second with 6 points, ahead of Switzerland with 3. However, only the group winners and the top five second-placed teams qualified. Finland ended up as the first team left out, ahead of only Israel in the second-place rankings.

Despite having a higher attack success rate (41% vs 31%), Finland committed more attack errors (12 vs 6). Switzerland led in blocks (15–14) and aces (9–7).

This was the 751st international match in Finland women’s team history, with a record now standing at 375 wins, 375 losses, and 1 draw. Suvi Kokkonen played her 109th match, moving to 19th all-time in appearances.

Other Match Results 

Women 

• Portugal – Georgia 3–0 (25–8, 25–16, 25–18)

• Hungary – Denmark 3–0 (25–13, 25–14, 25–15)

Men:

• Israel – Croatia 3–2 (25–22, 18–25, 25–21, 24–26, 15–10)

For full match results and the updated tournament standings, tap here.