Ireland to host major event with #EuroVolleyU20W Final Round coming to Dublin
News
Volleyball Ireland will co-host together with Bulgaria the Final Round of this year’s #EuroVolleyU20W. The August championship promises to be one of the most watched women’s sports events to be held in Ireland this year, with seven of the continent’s best young teams joining hosts Ireland, at the iconic Sport Ireland Campus in Dublin.
From August 5-13, Ireland will host one of two eight-team pools, with tournament co-hosts Bulgaria staging Pool B and semis and medal matches in Sofia. The top two sides from Pool A will qualify for the semi-finals and vie for the medals in Bulgaria’s capital city. The event will be historic, with Ireland becoming the first ever member of the Small Countries Association (SCA) to host the final stage of a European Championship.
CEV President Aleksandar Boričić commented: “Over the last few years, the CEV has encouraged ‘developing’ National Federations to take up the challenge and host a European Championship for one or the other age group, as we wish to expand the popularity of our sport across the whole of Europe. Volleyball Ireland has experienced tremendous growth and development in recent times, and I am confident that the delivery of this championship will lay the foundations for the further growth of the game in the country. Ireland are literally breaking new ground for European and international Volleyball, as the first member of the Small Countries Association to host an event of this magnitude. I am sure that they will be up to the task, as I can sense their enthusiasm and excitement for what lies ahead.”
Ireland captain Laura Connolly, graduate of Rockford Manor school, student at TUD Dublin and current player at DVC Lions is buzzing for the challenge ahead:
Laura Connolly“I am incredibly excited for Ireland to host such as massive event. It is a great honour every time we represent our country, but being able to do that at home, in a major European Finals is just huge. The whole team recognise the challenge ahead, but we feel so lucky and privileged to have this opportunity, against some of the best players in the world. The preparation is cranking up now, and we are really looking forward to giving it our all.”
Team Ireland captain
As the fifth most popular sport in the world, Volleyball’s participation levels are booming, both domestically and globally. Back in September, over 92,000 people watched a NCAA Women’s Volleyball match in Nebraska, USA, breaking the women’s sports match attendance world record. In Ireland, participation levels have tripled in the last four years, with five times more children now playing the sport than in 2019.
Gary Stewart“Hosting this event gives Volleyball Ireland a huge opportunity to further grow the game. Anyone that watches the sport knows it’s exciting, dramatic, and action-packed. Bringing the best young players in Europe to Dublin will showcase the sport like nothing else. If you have not been to a live Volleyball match, nor a female sports event, then this is the perfect opportunity to see elite athletes, future Olympic champions, and the next generation of global role models. Get it in your diary now!”
Volleyball Ireland Chief Executive
As a global game, Volleyball is typically the second or third most popular sport in most countries, in fact Italy, Sweden, Poland and Croatia have already qualified with Ukraine, Germany and France all making the second qualifying round. In Ireland, over 74% of adult members are foreign, coming from 88 different countries. This is something Stewart aims to build on: “There are 11,500 Polish people living in Fingal alone, with over 120,000 living across Ireland. There is 12,000 Italians, and over 23,000 people have moved here from France and Germany. All of these people have Volleyball in their blood, it’s their culture, so we really see this event as a chance to celebrate the multiculturism of our sport, its global appeal and give those that have settled in Ireland a chance to see their national team and become involved with the sport locally here. We will do this whilst inspiring the next generation of Laura Connolly’s, Jenny King’s, and Jess Dowling’s.”
A comprehensive legacy programme will ensure that the event has a lasting impact, with Volleyball Ireland President Clodagh NicCanna keen to emphasise the long-term plan for the sport: “There is no doubt that this is the biggest Volleyball event Ireland has ever seen. It is history. We will be grabbing the opportunity with both hands and using it to further grow participation, up-skill our volunteers, strengthen our clubs and inspire more people to join the Volleyball Ireland community. Volleyball is huge globally, this is a serious event that will bring international eyeballs to Volleyball Ireland, and we hope to capture the imagination of sports fans in Ireland. Volleyball has a real buzz about it, and we will be doing our utmost to ensure everyone is welcome to the Sport Ireland Indoor Arena to feel the buzz of Volleyball!”
The legacy programme will include coach education courses with world-class tutors, as well as a club development programme and supports for youth clubs. A Sport Ireland funded teenage girls programme will run alongside the championship.
Ireland’s first test event will take place later this month as the U20 Men’s Small Countries Association (SCA) Championship will be held at the Sport Ireland Campus. Five teams – Ireland, Gibraltar, Northern Ireland, San Marino, and Scotland – will compete for a place in the Final Round in Serbia and Greece. The matches start on January 26 and will be finishing on Sunday, January 28.
