Every point matters – Team Latvia takes the lead in men’s European League

Team Latvia emerged as one of only three teams with a perfect record of two wins and no sets lost after completion of the men’s CEV Volleyball European League 2026 first weekend of action. Team Latvia had routed Romania on Friday and did just the same on Sunday with another impressive and compelling 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-13) victory over Kosovo on home soil. 

Unlike the first game of the Riga tournament, where Latvia managed to beat higher ranked Romania, this time the hosts were the clear-cut pre-favourites. They managed to confirm this status in front of their fans from the very beginning, scoring seven of the first eight points. The Latvian players performed excellently in the block, especially in the first set, where they scored as many as seven – and eventually finished the match on 14 stuffs. 

“We do not really care how strong the opponent is, because all teams are dangerous on the court. Our goal is to qualify for the European Championship, so every set is important, every point can make a big difference for the final tables. We fought for every ball even in situations when the lead was already large enough,” said Latvian national team leader Renars Pauls Jansons. The top scorer with 19 points was captain Kristaps Smits, followed by Gustavs Freimanis (12) and Jansons (11). Erind Qalaj and Gazmend Husaj scored seven points each for the Kosovo national team.

Jansons highlighted the support of the spectators at the tournament in Riga: “It was a pleasure to see what was happening in the stands. There were a lot of spectators, they were loud and it was nice that most of them were dressed in our national colours. Representing the national team in your home country is a huge pleasure and honour.”

Nine teams have started the tournament with two wins, but only three of them – Latvia, the Netherlands and Estonia – have not lost a single set. Among them, the Latvians have the best points ratio. After three rounds of matches, the four best of the 27 participating teams will advance to the semis and secure their place in the 2028 edition of the CEV EuroVolley. 

The Riga tournament ended with the Israeli women’s team recording a 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-23) victory over hosts Latvia. The Israelis recovered from the defeat they had suffered against Romania the day before, which was also highlighted by the team’s assistant coach Yahli Savir: “Yesterday was a bit of a shock for us, we were too scared, but today we showed character. We wanted to show our mentality, which we are known for in the world. We took care of the ball much better and avoided making stupid mistakes.”

In all three sets, the teams were separated by only a few points, but the Israeli team controlled the game, not allowing the hosts to achieve a breakthrough. “Physically, we did not look as powerful as in the first game against Romania. Perhaps we still felt the tiredness from Friday’s five-set game. We still need to work on stability, because good episodes alternate with bad ones. In such situations, you have to give energy all the time, but today we lacked it a bit,” admitted the leader of the Latvian team, Marta Kamelija Levinska. She was the top scorer for the home side with 21 points, while Valeriia Gamanovich scored 22 for the Israeli team.

A year ago, the Israeli national team lost in three sets in the CEV European Silver League match in Latvia, but this time there was a completely different team on the court. “Several experienced players have finished their careers in the national team. We have started a new process with young players, several of whom have come from US universities. We are trying to build a new and strong team for the coming years. Our head coach Anna Velikiy is one of the best players in the history of Israeli Volleyball, and her assistant Tatiana Artmenko is also one with the same background. These are two legends of Israeli Volleyball who will try to raise the women’s game to the highest level. I see that the project is moving in the right direction, but only time will tell how successful it will be,” concluded Savir.