Izmir, Battipaglia, and Madrid to host age-group Beach Volleyball European Championships

Izmir, Battipaglia, and Madrid will welcome the rising stars of European Beach Volleyball later this year for the 2026 edition of the U18, U20, and U22 Beach Volleyball European Championships. These cities and the local organisers have all a wealth of experience in the delivery of international Beach Volleyball events – so the three events are in very good hands and the most promising players in Europe can look forward to an experience to remember when they will proudly represent their countries on the continental stage. 

The first such championship, chronologically speaking, is the U20 competition that will run from September 3 to 6 in Battipaglia, southern Italy. The location has already played host to WEVZA zonal events as well as to stops of the Beach Pro Tour – and this year will be delivering a competition of this calibre for the first time. Many of the players who contested last year’s U18 competition in Corigliano Rossano, Calabria, will return to southern Italy, albeit Battipaglia lies in the region of Campania. 

The U20 event in Battipaglia will be followed a week later (September 10-13) by the U22 championship at the Parque Deportivo Puerta de Hierro in Madrid, a venue that many members of the Beach Volleyball community have become familiar with over the last few years. Apart from hosting single-gender Beach Pro Tour at the beginning of the season, Puerta de Hierro has also welcomed a number of age-group competitions as well – including the U18 tournament in 2023 and last year’s U20 championship. Most likely, some of the top-performers from the U20 event played last year at the same venue will return to Madrid as they continue their progression and transition to the senior ranks. This event will for the first time feature prize money at stake – 5,000 € per gender – in an effort to further raise its profile and professionalisation. 

The third and last continental age-group championship – designed for the U18 category – will be taking place in Foça, Izmir, Türkiye, from September 17-20. An ideal and idyllic environment on the Aegean coast will welcome the youngest competitors across all age groups, with the U18 event returning to the Izmir area for the first time since the 2020 edition held almost at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Izmir has established itself as a real hotspot for the delivery of such championships, since it did also host the 2021 and 2022 editions of the U20 tournament. 

As of 2025 and in 2026 as well, the U18 and U20 continental championships will be preceded by 1st Round qualifiers organised by the CEV Zonal Associations, with dates and venues due to be confirmed in due course. The top two nations from all these qualifiers will secure a spot in the Final Round scheduled for September in Izmir and Battipaglia, respectively – provided that at least 40% of the respective member Federations are involved in such qualifiers.  

Click here to download the full CEV Beach Volleyball calendar for 2026.