Volleyball

High-profile line-up confirmed for European League 2023

News

Article Tue, Dec 13 2022

Teams from as many as 22 National Federations have registered for participation in the 2023 edition of the CEV European Golden and Silver Leagues. This figure shows that the European League remains a much-sought platform for national teams to continue with their development on the international stage – while preparing for the eagerly anticipated highlight of the season, the CEV EuroVolley 2023 – which will be taking place across seven host countries in the late summer of next year.

France are the reigning women's European Golden League champions and back for more success on the way to Paris 2024

“Year after year, the European League has been providing national teams with opportunities to contest competitive matches as well as to vie for a spot in the elite Volleyball Nations League. We encourage National Federations to work hard to make sure that the European League becomes an opportunity to make their athletes household names – and for this to happen, next to our continuous support, they need to grow attendance at the matches as well as their digital and social media exposure."

Aleksandar Boričić
CEV President

For the 2022 edition alone, the CEV invested some € 800,000 in the European League – with 90 matches played across all four competitions resulting in 250+ hours of live streaming and / or broadcasting.

Last year’s Golden League winners Czech Republic and France return to defend their respective men’s and women’s crowns. The Czechs will start their journey in a highly competitive Pool C featuring Finland, plus two-time (2016 and 2018) European League winners Estonia and Slovakia – a country which boasts two European League titles (2008 and 2011) to their name as well. The men’s national team of Türkiye won the title in 2019 as well as in 2021 – and they are the highest ranked team in the competition. After they successfully delivered the final stage in 2022, Croatia have come forward to host the men’s Final Four in 2023 as well.

CEV President Aleksandar Boričić chaired the European League meeting 2023 delivered in a hybrid format

France claimed a historic women’s title in 2022 – and they will begin their quest for further glory in a pool featuring another two former European League winners – Ukraine (2017) and Hungary (2015). A major contender for the title will be Belgium’s ‘Yellow Tigers’ – who return to the European League after spending a few years in the Volleyball Nations League and will be aiming high as they prepare for a EuroVolley on home soil later in the season.

The 2022 edition of the European Golden League involves – next to the highest ranked European teams not involved in the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) – also the winners of last year’s Silver League – with Romania emerging victorious from the men’s event and Sweden topping the charts of the women’s competition.

The pool composition for the group stage whereby the competition will get underway reflects the European Ranking compiled after completion of this year’s Men’s and Women’s World Championships – with a double round robin system with teams playing each other twice, once at home and once away. The top two teams from the final standing will qualify for the 2023 edition of the FIVB Challenger Cup – and the team finishing last will move down to the Silver League in 2024.

As for the Silver League, the winners of this competition will move up to the Golden League in 2024. This means that there is much at stake for a series of up-and-coming teams, including some that will be making their historic European League debut. This applies, for instance, to the men’s and women’s national teams of the Faroe Islands – as well as to the women’s team of North Macedonia, for whom the Silver League will represent the first senior international competition of any kind since the qualifiers for the 2014 FIVB Women’s World Championship. As with the Golden League, teams in the same pool will contest a series of home and away matches, with Austria already confirmed as the hosts of the women’s Final Four – which will be taking place in the city of Graz.

Further information about the competition calendar and format is available in the respective Official Communication:

European Golden League
European Silver League

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