Poland, France, Italy, and Israel all victorious on #EuroVolleyU22M Day 1

On Monday, the #EuroVolleyU22M Final Round kicked off in spectacular fashion in Albufeira, European City of Sport 2026, bringing together the absolute elite of European Volleyball and showcasing the rising stars of the sport. The opening day of action immediately lived up to the immense hype, delivering gruelling five-set dramas, tactical masterclasses, and raw emotional intensity that proved there are no weak teams among the eight nations competing for the European crown.

In Pool I, the home crowd witnessed a truly emotional rollercoaster as Portugal and Poland put on an unforgettable five-set thriller, with the Polish side eventually emerging victorious with a 3-2 scoreline of 25-23, 21-25, 18-25, 25-22, and 15-12. Portugal seemed to have the match firmly within their grasp, driven by an outstanding performance from Tomás Teixeira, who emerged as the match’s top scorer with 22 points. However, Poland’s late-match motivation and aggressiveness from the service line, backed by Wojciech Gajek’s 19 points, turned the tide in the final set. 

Following the tense victory, Polish head coach Piotr Graban was visibly happy but kept his celebrations restrained. He openly praised the incredible atmosphere created by the fans and highly commended the Portuguese team, emphasising that they fought relentlessly for every single ball. Graban noted that Portugal was exceptionally well-prepared and tactically sound in every position with no visible weak points, which explained why his team faced such severe difficulties and was pushed to five sets. While he acknowledged the win, he extended his congratulations to the hosts for an amazing job. Looking ahead at the tournament, Graban stated that while powerhouses like Italy and France are traditionally among the best, this tournament features the top eight European teams, meaning there are no weak sides. He remarked that this opening match proved the level of competition is incredibly high – perhaps not always in terms of pure Volleyball technique, but definitely in terms of emotional intensity. He concluded that while first matches are rarely perfect, he still views Italy and France as the prime favourites if he had to choose.

On the other side of the court, Portugal’s head coach João Franco highlighted that his team played remarkably well throughout the match but suffered a costly technical drop-off in their blocking. He explained that while the overall strategy remained intact, the team lacked efficiency and clarity in the decisive moments of the fourth and fifth sets, failing to convert high balls where they had previously been winning points most of the time. While calling the result a shame and recognising the emotional toll such a narrow loss takes on the players, Franco demanded an immediate mental recovery ahead of a tough match against a high-quality Israeli team, concluding with the firm belief that despite the exceptionally high level of the tournament, Portugal still has what it takes to reach the semi-finals.

In the other Pool I fixture, Israel laid down a marker of absolute supremacy by executing a clean 3-0 sweep against Ukraine with set scores of 25-19, 25-22, and 25-20. Driven by the offensive power of senior national team players Mark Rura and outside hitter Shay Mayo Liberman, who dominated as the game’s top scorer with 19 points, Israel controlled the flow of the game despite a solid resistance from Ukraine’s top scorer Eduard Shteryk, who recorded 11 points.

Reflecting on the flawless start, Israel’s head coach Noam Katz stated that what pleased him most about the performance was how his players stayed completely united as a cohesive team throughout the entire match. He acknowledged that they went through difficult moments, particularly in the second and third sets when they allowed Ukraine to mount comebacks after Israel had already built a comfortable lead. However, Katz praised his squad for maintaining their composure, believing in their own strength, and flawlessly executing the tactical plan they had prepared before the match. He remained fiercely grounded, declaring that a win is a win and that he refuses to look at other teams, choosing instead to focus entirely on his own players. Katz emphasised that because all eight teams in this tournament are high-calibre opponents, his squad must maintain this mentality, continue to believe in their power, and fight until the absolute end.

Pool II delivered an equally compelling narrative, starting with an intense battle where France narrowly escaped an upset against Czechia, winning 3-2 with sets of 16-25, 25-22, 22-25, 25-17, and 15-9. The Czech side entered the match with tremendous momentum, completely catching the favourite French team off guard in a one-sided opening set, heavily supported by their captain Matej Pastrnak. However, France adjusted their starting lineup, utilising the physical presence of 2.07-meter middle blocker Joris Seddik and the offensive execution of Joévin Wa-Bala to secure the victory in the deciding set.

After the final whistle, French head coach Slimane Belmadi offered a candid tactical breakdown, explaining that the ultimate turning point in the match was his team’s ability to increase the quality of their service. He noted that by serving more aggressively, they managed to disrupt the organisation of the Czech game and dramatically reduce their own errors. Belmadi admitted that their poor start was caused by missing too many serves early on, which completely paralysed their block-defence system and made their good receptions feel like a wasted effort. He stated that once the service improved, the team finally unlocked opportunities to defend and counter-attack. While acknowledging that France still lacks defensive sharpness and has plenty of room for improvement, Belmadi pointed out that this European Championship features a multitude of incredibly strong sides. He remarked that naming a single favourite is highly complicated because so many teams are capable of winning, adding that even rather unheralded teams like Portugal proved on day one that they can step up, play an excellent game, and stop absolutely anyone. Belmadi concluded that no favourite can afford to relax in this tournament, and openly stated that France must rapidly raise their level of play if they want to be considered true contenders, as they are currently not at that level yet.

The day had started with a highly anticipated clash of titans in Pool II, where Italy flexed their muscles with a 3-0 sweep over a powerful Bulgaria side, recording set scores of 28-26, 25-22, and 25-20. The scoreline, however, belies the immense tension of the match, as Bulgaria dominated the opening set behind Erik Georgiev and the towering 2.13-meter Dimitar Peychinov. Italy survived multiple set points in a gruelling 28-26 opener before unleashing opposite Diego Frascio, who spearheaded the Italian offense as the match’s top scorer with 17 points, closely followed by Manuel Zlatanov with 13 points, while Zhasmin Velichkov answered for Bulgaria with 11 points.

Following the crucial victory, Italian head coach Vincenzo Fanizza expressed his happiness with the result but firmly dismissed any talk of his team being the tournament favourites, preferring instead to highlight the sheer competitive nature of the European stage. Fanizza admitted that the opening match of such a tournament is always filled with an immense amount of tension, which was clearly visible in the opening two sets. He specifically pointed to the first set, where Italy was trailing heavily under pressure but praised his players for staying composed, and successfully turning the score around. Despite Italy entering the tournament with a massive reputation, Fanizza adamantly rejected the favourite label, stating that they are absolutely not the clear-cut favourites due to the sheer volume of elite talent present in Albufeira. He concluded that teams like France, Ukraine, Poland, and Bulgaria all possess incredible depth, meaning there are several legitimate candidates capable of playing beautiful Volleyball and going all the way in this championship.