Four teams left on the path towards the CEV Volleyball Cup Women trophy

There are only four teams left in the CEV Volleyball Cup Women and the potential of drama is high, as CS Volei Alba Blaj face Vasas Óbuda Budapest, while Igor Gorgonzola Novara take on THY Istanbul in what could be a dramatic doubleheader.

Novara, the big favourites of the competition, have finished fourth in the regular season of the domestic league and are coming after a fantastic 3:1 win against Savino del Bene Scandicci, the team which had the best performance in the group stage of the CEV Champions League Women this season with six wins in as many matches without dropping any set.

The Italian side have four wins on the trot in all competitions and have made life for opponents very difficult this season, with their last loss coming against unbeaten A. Carraro Imoco Conegliano, 2:3, on their home court, as they have also have won five of the six matches played in the CEV Volleyball Cup Women this season.

However, Novara, which are trying to become the fifth Italian team to lift the trophy in the CEV Volleyball Cup Women in the past six seasons, have conceded a loss this season, 1:3 against another Turkish side, Kuzeyboruspor, in the play-offs, needing a golden set to make it through to the next phase.

But that golden set was secured, 15:5, by Novara, which in a good day can dominate their opponents with ease. Yet THY Istanbul have won seven out of their eight matches, all of them in straight sets.

The only mishap came in the first leg of the quarter-finals, against BKS Bostik ZGO Bielsko-Biała, when they lost 1:3, but they also dominated in the golden set, taking it 15:7, to reach their third European semi-final in history, after the CEV Challenge Cup in 2021 and the CEV Cup two years later.

The first leg of the doubleheader between Igor Gorgonzola Novara and THY Istanbul will be played on Wednesday, 5 March, at 20:00 CET.

Twice runners-up in the CEV Volleyball Cup Women in 2019 and 2023, runners-up in the CEV Champions League Women in 2018 and runners-up in the CEV Challenge Cup in 2021, CS Volei Alba Blaj have another chance to clinch their maiden European trophy, as they seem to be slight favourites against the reigning Hungarian champions.

So far, Blaj are undefeated in the competition, winning eight matches out of eight played, but will probably face the toughest opposition yet, the only team to have come from the CEV Champions League Women still in the hunt for the trophy, Vasas Óbuda Budapest.

Vasas finished third in their Champions League pool and then went on to eliminate Moya Radomka Radom, with a 3:1 home win and a 2:3 away loss.

Prior to meeting Vasas, Alba Blaj eliminated another Champions League team in the quarter-finals, FC Porto, dropping a single set on their way to a 3:0 away win and a 3:1 home win. The first leg will take place in Blaj, on Tuesday, 4 March, at 16:00 CET.