Pools set for EuroVolley 2021 qualifiers!

After a truly historic, revolutionary, record-breaking 2019 edition, Volleyball fans can start looking forward to CEV EuroVolley 2021, which will again feature 24 teams per gender and will be taking place across as many as eight countries! With the respective four hosts and the top eight teams from the 2019 edition already qualified, there are still 12 spots per gender at stake to join the ‘ultimate Volleyball party’ through the EuroVolley qualifiers due to take place later this summer.

As many as 38 men’s and 35 women’s teams have registered for participation in the 2021 edition of EuroVolley. All those not yet qualified will vie for a much-coveted ticket to the EuroVolley Finals by contesting a series of home and away matches in late August / early September.

Poland, Czech Republic, Estonia and Finland are due to host the men’s Finals, for which another eight teams have qualified already. These are Serbia, Slovenia, France, Russia, Italy, Ukraine, Germany and Belgium. The remaining ones will play the qualifiers as per the following pool composition, which reflects the latest European ranking released on January 1, 2020 and the use of the serpentine system:

Pool A: The Netherlands, Sweden, Croatia
Pool B: Bulgaria, Austria, Israel
Pool C: Turkey, North Macedonia, Denmark, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Pool D: Spain, Latvia, Republic of Moldova, Cyprus
Pool E: Slovakia, Romania, Switzerland, Albania
Pool F: Greece, Montenegro, Azerbaijan, Georgia
Pool G: Belarus, Portugal, Norway, Hungary

The seven pool winners as well as the five runners-up with the best result across all pools will secure their participation in CEV EuroVolley 2021 Men.

As for the women’s competition, the four hosts – Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania – as well as the top eight teams from the 2019 edition – Turkey, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Belgium and Azerbaijan – can already look forward to the Finals. The remaining 12 spots will go to the respective winners and runners-up of the following groups, contested as per the double round robin system:

Pool A: Belarus, Switzerland, Estonia
Pool B: Ukraine, Portugal, Georgia, Sweden
Pool C: Spain, Greece, Austria, Norway
Pool D: Slovakia, Finland, Montenegro, Kosovo
Pool E: Hungary, France, Israel, Denmark
Pool F: Slovenia, Czech Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia

With Europe’s up-and-coming teams hoping to make history and all wishing to join the ultimate Volleyball celebration that EuroVolley has become since last summer, there is much to look forward to for fans across the continent!