France and Bulgaria will play in the #EuroVolleyU20M final!

Let’s take a look back at how the teams reached the final and how their semifinal matches played out today in Serbia.

France vs. Czech Republic 3-0 (26-24, 25-12, 25-16)

After winning the European Championships in both the U18 and U22 categories this July, can France complete the "grand slam" this summer?

Having won all seven of their group matches at the European Championship, six of them with a 3-0 scoreline, and only one – the last one, where they had already secured first place – with a 3-1 victory over Latvia, the French U20 team once again shone on Friday in Vrnjacka Banja (Serbia), defeating the Czech Republic in three sets in the semifinal.

Thomas Pujol's teammates (11 points) needed one set to get into the game, as they faced a very motivated opponent at the start. Despite being down by four points, "Les Bleus" managed to turn the match around at a crucial moment and won the first set 26-24. They then confidently closed out the match.

The scores of 25-12 and 25-16 clearly reflect the dominance of Mathis Henno and Adrien Roure’s teammates (each scoring 10 points).

Let’s not forget that this summer, the French men's national team became Olympic champions for the second time in a row, and if the U20 team wins tomorrow, they will become three-time European champions, as the U22 and U18 teams already claimed their titles in July.

Bulgaria vs. Ukraine 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25:20)

Bulgaria reached the semifinals with only one loss and six wins, while Ukraine lost twice in their group stage.

In the first set, Bulgaria made twice as many unforced errors as their opponents but was far more effective in attack with 18 winning spikes compared to Ukraine’s 12. This allowed them to reach set point first and secure the first set in their favor. The top scorer for Bulgaria in this set was opposite Kristian Titriyski, with 6 points. Ukraine’s best performer was middle blocker Ruslan Chervatiuk, who scored 5 points.

In the second set, Bulgaria took control right from the start and maintained their dominance throughout. Towards the end of the set, Bulgaria doubled their advantage from +2 to +4, which is a significant lead in such situations. The set ended with a serve into the net from Volodymyr Romantsov’s team, sealing it 25-20 in Bulgaria's favor. Once again, Bulgaria was more efficient in attack with 14 winning spikes against Ukraine’s 8, and they managed to reduce their errors, with both teams committing 8 each in this set.

The third set followed a similar pattern: Miroslav Zhivkov’s team led from the first whistle and entered the final stretch with a 5-point advantage. This set also ended with a Ukrainian serve into the net, closing the match with a 25-20 score and a 3-0 result. Bulgaria's top scorer was Kristian Titriyski with 15 points, including 1 ace. For Ukraine, Eduard Shteryk scored 10 points.

Thus, tomorrow, France will face Bulgaria in the final 18:00 CEST.