Team Slovenia to compete in elite women’s Volleyball Nations League in 2027!

The Slovenian women’s national team will compete in the 2027 Volleyball Nations League (VNL)! The team has written another chapter in the history of Slovenian Volleyball and will make its debut in this elite international competition organised by the FIVB / Volleyball World.

The Slovenian women have completed the first part of their national team season, during which they competed in the European League and claimed the silver medal. With eight wins and only two losses, they also earned enough ranking points to climb to 18th place in the FIVB World Rankings. According to FIVB regulations, this ranking would have secured their place in the 2027 Volleyball Nations League. However, Slovenia was subsequently overtaken by Russia after the FIVB reinstated the Russian national teams to the world rankings in mid-July, just before the European League final.

The Slovenian camp therefore anxiously awaited the FIVB’s final decision on which nations would participate in the elite 2027 Volleyball Nations League. On Tuesday, the FIVB announced that, as an exception, the 2027 edition of the VNL will feature 19 national teams. In addition to the two Russian teams, the Slovenian women’s and Finnish men’s national teams have also been included, having earned their places through their performances this season. 

The news sparked great celebrations within the Slovenian team. Head coach Alessandro Orefice said: “Receiving this news is simply incredible. We are truly honoured and proud of what we have achieved. This season, we gave everything we had. We believed in ourselves and worked tirelessly to reach this goal. In the end, our belief and hard work paid off, and we achieved something extraordinary. I still do not think we have fully realised what we have accomplished, but I also believe we deserve it, as we earned our place among the world’s top 18 teams. I am truly happy because just two years ago we were ranked 29th in the world, and now we have broken into Volleyball's elite. It is simply unbelievable.”

Slovenian captain Saša Planinšec also reflected on the historic achievement: “I am incredibly happy and proud of what we have accomplished. We kept believing until the very end, even after the loss to Sweden. In the end, everything that perhaps had not gone our way before finally fell into place, and all of our hard work was rewarded. I am happy for every player and every member of the staff because we have worked incredibly hard. The stars aligned and everything turned in our favour - we made it. The feeling is absolutely unbelievable. A few years ago, I could not even have imagined something like this. I am immensely proud to be a part of it.”

The Slovenian men’s national team celebrated its own historic success on Sunday by defeating Japan to win the bronze medal in the Volleyball Nations League - the country’s first-ever medal in an FIVB competition. Now, Slovenia’s women’s national team will join them among the world’s Volleyball elite, marking another milestone for Slovenian Volleyball.

Slovenia will also soon contest the CEV EuroVolley 2026 Women, starting their journey in Pool A in Istanbul where they will play hosts and reigning European champions Türkiye, Poland, Germany, Hungary, and Latvia.