Five moments to remember from the EuroVolleyM 2023
Feature
As 2023 draws to a close, we are looking back towards the best moments of the year in volleyball in the most important European competitions, both for clubs and countries. We are throwing off the yearly review with the best moments of the CEV EuroVolley 2023 Men, a superb competition, which delivered copious amounts of excitement and drama for the fans and players alike.
Perfect Poland seal title in style
After sealing two consecutive bronze medals in 2019 and 2021, dropping one match each time, in the semi-finals, Poland bounced back in style and fulfilled their potential with an outstanding performance at the CEV EuroVolley Men 2023, as they lost only four sets, won nine out of nine, and clinched their second-ever European title.
While conceding a set each against Belgium in the Round of 16, against Serbia in the quarter-finals and in the semi-final against Slovenia, Poland were nothing short of amazing and were never really put into a difficult position, dominating their opponents with ease, as five of their players made the All-Star team.
In fact, Poland finished the competition for the second time in history without a loss, created their largest-ever winning streak in a single edition – nine matches in a row – and dropped the joint-lowest number of sets in a single edition at the European premium competition – four - as their win was never in doubt in the final against Italy, where they took the title in straight sets, 25:20, 25:21, 25:23.
Leon seals maiden MVP title
Five Poland players made the All-Star team, including the MVP, Wilfredo León, who shined throughout the whole competition, scoring 13 points in the final against Italy, being a crucial player for his side in their quest to secure their second title in history in the European premium competition.
In his third edition of the CEV EuroVolley Men, León made it to the All-Star team for the second time, after he was named the best outside spiker in 2019, now being awarded the same distinction, as well as the MVP trophy, for his outstanding contribution. The Cuban-born star only featured in 20 sets and eight matches for Poland, but scored 91 points, a 4.55 average per set, one of the best in the competition.
Paweł Zatorski, Marcin Janusz, Norbert Huber and Lukasz Kaczmarek also made the All-Star team for Poland, while Türkiye’s Bedirhan Bülbül and runners-up Italy’s Daniele Lavia also were selected in the top team of the competition.
World record set at the EuroVolleyM 2023
The CEV EuroVolley Men 2023 also brought a new record for the serve speed, after the previous one was beaten by an outstanding serve from Dutch star Nimir Abdel-Aziz, who clocked it at 137.6 km/h.
Once again, it was Wilfredo León who shined, delivering a fantastic 138.6 km/h serve against Denmark, which was impossible to stop due to its speed and precision, retaking the crown as the player with the fastest serve, previously taken by Abdel-Aziz in the pool phase.
In fact, the CEV EuroVolley Men 2023 brought five serves of at least 130 km/h, with León topping the charts at 138.5 km/h, followed by Abdel-Aziz’s 137.6 km/h effort, while the podium was completed by Bulgaria’s Tsvetan Sokolov (131.7 km/h). Spain’s Jordi Ramon (130.8 km/h) and Serbia’s Pavle Peric (130.1 km/h) also made the cut in this top.
Fantastic atmosphere over eight venues
Nearly 185.000 fans flocked to the eight venues hosting the CEV EuroVolley 2023 Men to see their favourites, providing an excellent setting for the competition. Italy had five venues – in Rome, Bologna, Perugia, Ancona and Bari – with the Italian capital hosting the final rounds, while Bulgaria (Varna), Israel (Tel Aviv) and North Macedonia (Skopje) also provided excellent conditions for the participating teams.
Over 9500 fans were there in the stands in Rome for the two semi-finals, while the finals were sold-out, with 10.300 spectators being present for the dramatic bronze medal match between Slovenia and France, where the former side took a 3:2 win, as well as for the final, where the hosts, Italy, were dominated by Poland, 3:0.
Big interest in social media for the EuroVolleyM 2023
The two editions of the CEV EuroVolley – men’s and women’s – which took place in August and September 2023, brought a huge attention from the fans on CEV’s social media channels. Over 300 million impressions were racked around the social media platforms, with 1500 video clips produced, which also brough 80 million social media views.
170.000 people watched the matches on EuroVolleyTV, while 170.000 new digital followers were registered on CEV’s channels, with over 250.000 new users on CEV.eu brought by the two competitions. This proves once again that volleyball is a hugely popular sport and the two competitions drew an immense interest from the fans, which flocked to keep in touch with the latest developments.