No room for mistake, as European sides aim for Finals spots in the Nations League Women

The league round of the 2025 FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League reaches its dramatic conclusion this week, as the race for knockout phase tickets intensifies. For Europe’s top teams, the stakes could not be higher: with just days remaining before the league round wraps up on 13 July, every match, set, and point will determine who advances to the Finals in Łódź, Poland.

So far, four European sides are between the top eight which will secure safe passage to the next phase, as Italy, Poland and Türkiye are on the first, second and fourth place respectively. As Poland will be the hosts of the knockout phase, they are already qualified to the next phase of the competition.

This week, the Dutch city of Apeldoorn stands at the heart of the action, hosting a pool stacked with European powerhouses. Italy, Türkiye, Serbia, the Netherlands, Belgium, and debutants Czechia will be facing off, with different objectives.

While Italy are unbeaten and have dropped only five sets so far in the first eight matches played, they are favourites against Belgium and Serbia, with the latter side losing all matches and having no chance to progress to the next phase, but Italy’s mettle will be tested against Türkiye and hosts Netherlands in the last two matches.

Elsewhere, Bulgaria and France are fighting for survival in Chiba, Japan, while Germany faces a stern test in Arlington, USA, against some of the world’s best. The German side is due to face Canada, Thailand, China and the Dominican Republic, with the last two matches being decisive for the European team.

The battle for survival looks stern for some of the teams, as Germany are now holding the seventh place in the standings, with four wins and four losses, and 14 points, while Czechia are just below the line, on the ninth place, with four wins and four losses, but with only 10 points under their belt.

France (3-5), the Netherlands (3-5), Bulgaria (3-5) and Belgium (3-5) all hold hopes for the podium, but they will need perfect weeks and no mishaps to challenge for a play-off place.

The eight top teams in the league round will qualify for the Final Round of the 2025 FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League, which will take place in Łódź, Poland. The quarter-finals are scheduled for 23 and 24 July, with the semi-finals taking place on 26 July and the big final on 27 July.

France’s opposite spiker, Iman Ndiaye, is the top scorer of the competition so far, with 169 points, followed by Brazil’s Ana Cristina Menezes Oliveira de Souza, with 162 points, and China’s Mengjie Wu, with 147 points.