Year in Review: CEV Club Competitions

The year 2022 slowly but surely comes to an end. Therefore, it's a perfect opportunity to look back on what happened over the last twelve months in Volleyball. First, let's focus on the club competitions. A thrilling quest for Europe's trophies in the 2022 season, so the CEV Champions League Volley, the CEV Cup and the CEV Challenge Cup, lasted almost eight months and was concluded with triumphs of the clubs from Türkiye, Poland, Italy and France.

Champions League

The SuperFinals in Ljubljana hosted by the iconic Arena Stožice on May 22nd was definitely one of the highlights of the year 2022. All the 2021 finalists, so the defending champions Imoco Volley Conegliano and Grupa Azoty Zaksa Kędzierzyn Koźle, along with VakifBank Istanbul and Trentino Itas reached the SuperFinals again after tough battles in the previous phases of Europe's most prestigious club competition. The club from Kędzierzyn Koźle, despite several changes in the squad and coaching staff, won their second consecutive title, once VakifBank got revenge on Conegliano, becoming the most titled club in history.

Star-studded line-ups fighting for Europe's crown were like a magnet for Volleyball fans all around the world, attracting almost ten thousand spectators, who were present in the stands in Slovenia's capital city and reaching a 17 million audience with 98 TV markets covered.

The women's final was another chapter in the long story of rivalry between VakifBank Istanbul and Imoco Volley Conegliano in recent years and another electrifying battle. After losing the previous SuperFinals, the Turkish powerhouse took revenge on the Italian club, beating them in the final of the FIVB Club World Championship in December 2021, and they found a way to dethrone their eternal rival also in the Champions League. Thus, VakifBank Istanbul became the best team in the CEV Champions League Volley's history, having five titles to their name.

Players around coach Giovanni Guidetti needed four sets and 123 minutes to claim the awaited title. Once most expected another duel between two arguably best opposites in the world - Swedish Isabelle Haak and Italian Paola Egonu, it was Brazilian magician Gabi Guimaraes producing outstanding performance - 23 points - and being named the MVP. However, Egonu also impressed, scoring as many as 39 points.

The fan-voted All-Star Team of the CEV Champions League Volley 2022 was totally dominated by VakifBank players. Cansu Özbay was voted Best Setter, Isabelle Haak - the Best Opposite, Gabi Guimaraes and Michelle Bartsch-Hackley - Best Outside Hitters, Ayça Aykaç - Best Libero and Zehra Gunes - who was joined by Fenerhbahçe icon Eda Erdem Dundar - were named Best Middle Blocker.

After the 2022 season, we witnessed one of the most exciting transfer exchanges, as Egonu joined VakifBank, once Haak moved to Conegliano. Coach Daniele Santarelli called the SuperFinals in Ljubljana "the last dance" of his team, as the roster was significantly changed ahead of the new season.

Several changes were applied to Grupa Azoty ZAKSA Kędzierzyn Koźle's line-up, but under the guidance of the new coach - Gheorghe Cretu, the Polish Champions once again lifted the Champions League trophy. Zaksa, who became the first Polish club to win the #CLVolleyM since the new format was launched, defended the title in majestic style. The club from Kędzierzyn Koźle triumphed after three sets, but Trentino fought bravely, as the third set was closed 32-30!

26-year-old Polish outside hitter - Kamil Semeniuk became the hero of the SuperFinals, he scored astonishing 27 points and recorded 74% success in attack, confirming that he is one of the most prominent Volleyball players. His merits were obviously recognised with an MVP award.

Semeniuk's performance was not missed by Volleyball fans, who picked him for the All-Star Team. Also Zaksa's libero Erik Shoji was among fans' favourites, along with three Ziraat Ankara's players - setter Arslan Eksi, opposite Wouter Ter Maat together with outside hitter Martin Atanasov and middle blockers from Lube - Robertlandy Simon Aties and Greenyard Maasek - Gustavo Guazzelli Bonatto.

CEV Cup
The race for the CEV Cup trophies also delivered thrilling performances. In the women's competition, Eczacibasi Dynavit Istanbul lifted up the trophy after beating Allianz MTV Stuttgart twice 3-1 in the final double-header. It was the third #CEVCupW title for the Tigers and first since 2018. Eczacibasi's setter Maja Ognenović once again impressed with her play-making skills and grabbed the MVP title. Her teammate Tijana Bošković, who scored 27 points in the decisive match , topped the 2022 CEV Cup's scorers chart with immens 170 points throughout the competition. 

The men's competition was concluded with the maiden victory for Vero Volley Monza. The Italian squad beat Tours VB twice in straight sets to earn their long-awaited title. The French club made it all the way through the qualification round to the finals, but Monza proved too strong for the French revelation. The Italian club powered by Uladzislau Davyskiba, who contributed with 16 points in the deciding game, was unstoppable. The Belarusian outside hitter was named the MVP.

Challenge Cup
The 2022 edition of the CEV Challenge Cup witnessed two truly historic achievements. Savino Del Bene Scandicci outclassed Spain's CV Tenerife La Laguna to claim their first-ever trophy. It was a truly remarkable achievement for Scandicci, who in the past performed only once at the European stage - competing in the 2020/2021 Champions League. Their key player was opposite Ekaterina Antropova, who tallied 11 points in the decisive match and was one of the top scorers of the season (119 points in 9 matches). Thus, it was no surprise that the MVP award was presented to her. 

Narbonne Volley and Halkbank Ankara produced the truly unforgettable #CEVCupM final. The French side was a revelation of the competition in their rookie performance, winning three golden sets on their way to the historic trophy - in the 8th finals against Sporting CP Lisboa, in the semifinals against ACH Volley Ljubljana and in the finals itself. Narbonne lost the first final clash to Ankara in straight sets but, sparked by the home crowd, they won the decisive match 3-1 after 129 minutes of play. Thus, the golden set was required to determine the winner. It took 39 minutes to battle it out, but with 21-19 on the scoreboard, Narbonne wildly celebrated their maiden trophy. The terrific effort of setter Nicolas Uriarte was recognised with the MVP award, while his teammate Remi Bassereau topped the charts with 26 points.

FIVB Club World Championships
In December 2022, the European clubs dominated again in the FIVB Club World Championships, winning this time the champion and vice-champion titles in both women's and men's competitions.

The women's event was held in Antalya, Turkey, where the tournament ended with an all-European podium. The final match saw once again Imoco and VakifBank fighting for the title. The Italian team got back their world crown after beating VakifBank 3-1. Once, Eczacibasi Dynavit Istanbul snatched the bronze medal.

The men's tournament in Betim produced an all-Italian final. Sir Safety Monini Perugia, who strengthened their squad ahead of this season with the 2022 SuperFinals MVP - Kamil Semeniuk, beat Trentino 3-1 to earn their historic club world champion title and become the sixth Italian club team to achieve this feat. The tournament brought one more historic achievement, Perugia's setter, Simone Gianneli, became the first player in history with an MVP award won in the same year after leading both his club and national team to the world championship title.