One of the biggest surprises in the qualifications for the 2027 U20 European Volleyball Championship came from Yerevan. Poland, whose squad includes names of European champions from this summer, lost to Estonia 0:3 (22:25, 21:25, 22:25) and was left without a chance for a direct quota for the finals in Croatia and Montenegro.
The defeat is a serious blow to the ambitions of the Polish school, which only three months ago celebrated the European title in the U18 category. At the championship in the Italian cities of Porto San Giorgio and Cisterna di Latina, Jacek Nawrocki’s team achieved nine consecutive victories, including in the final against France with 3:1 (22:25, 25:23, 28:26, 25:21).
On the way to the gold medals, the Poles also overcame Bulgaria. In the semi-final, the two teams played an extremely contested match, ending 3:2 (19:25, 25:19, 33:35, 25:17, 15:10) for Poland. Subsequently, the Bulgarian juniors won the bronze medals after a victory over Italy.
European champions and promising players in the Polish selection
Three of Poland’s heroes from Euro 2026 U18 are also participating in the current qualification in Yerevan – setter Jakub Przybyłkowicz, opposite Adam Potempa, and outside hitter Karol Leppert.
Przybyłkowicz was chosen as the most valuable player (MVP) of the European Championship and the best setter. Potempa also found a place in the ideal team as the best opposite, and Leppert was among the leading scorers for the Poles on their way to the title.
However, Jacek Nawrocki’s selection is far from limited to these three names. The squad also includes Patryk Głowacki, Mikołaj Pachura, Paweł Guzy, Bartosz Hofmann, and Cezary Ślusarz – young volleyball players who are already gaining experience in the Polish talent development system.
Particular attention should be paid to the 204-centimeter outside hitter Patryk Głowacki, who also has experience from international competitions in older age groups. He scored 13 points against Estonia, including 11 from attack.
Another interesting player is the 211-centimeter opposite Paweł Guzy, who came through the Jastrzębski Węgiel academy. For the current season, he is associated with KS Jastrzębie-Borynia, while Głowacki, Pachura, and Ślusarz are part of the SMS PZPS Spała system – the specialized center for the development of young volleyball players under the Polish Federation.
Pachura, who was born in 2009, distinguished himself with 11 points in the victory over Georgia, and Guzy added 9. Hofmann also had an opportunity to play in the tournament.
It is curious that Jacek Nawrocki also works in the SMS PZPS Spała system. Thus, some of the young national team players have the opportunity to train together not only during the national team camps but also during the club season.
This makes the defeat against Estonia even more unexpected. Poland has European champions, physically promising players, and an established training system, but nevertheless failed to overcome the Baltic opponent.
Estonia turned Poland around and didn’t leave them a single set
The Polish team started its participation in Yerevan with a convincing victory over Georgia with 3:0 (25:11, 25:16, 25:22), but on October 29, it suffered an unexpected defeat against Estonia.
The beginning of the match did not foreshadow such a development. The Poles took an 8:4 lead in the first set, but gradually lost the initiative. Estonia equalized at 13:13, and in the decisive rallies, demonstrated greater stability and won the set 25:22.
In the second set, the Baltic team again managed to impose its will, and in the third, it did not allow the opponent to make a comeback. Thus, Estonia closed the match after 84 minutes of play.
For Poland, the most effective scorer was Adam Potempa with 14 points, followed by Patryk Głowacki with 13. However, their efforts were not enough even to win a single set.
Poland waited for help from Georgia, but hopes faded
The loss to Estonia did not automatically mean the end of Polish hopes for direct qualification. To stay in the fight for first place in the group, Nawrocki’s players had to rely on Georgia defeating Estonia 3:0 on October 30.
Such a result would have led to a triple tie in wins and losses between the three teams, and the ranking would have been determined by additional criteria.
Estonia, however, did not allow a surprise and defeated Georgia 3:0 (25:20, 25:19, 25:17), finishing the group stage with two wins and no lost sets.
Thus, the Estonians qualified for the final of the Eastern European Volleyball Zonal Association (EEVZA) tournament, where they face Latvia today. The winner will receive the only direct quota for the European Championship allocated to this zone.
Poland, on the other hand, must play against Ukraine for third place before focusing its efforts on the second qualification round, scheduled for January 14–17, 2027.
Bulgaria already has a quota, despite the loss to Russia
Against the backdrop of disappointment for the Poles, the Bulgarian U20 national team already has a guaranteed spot among the participants of Euro 2027.
At the end of August, the team led by Ventsislav Simeonov achieved four consecutive victories at the Balkan Volleyball Association (BVA) qualification tournament, which took place in the capital’s “Hristo Botev” hall.
Bulgaria successively prevailed over North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, and Belarus, before losing to Russia 0:3 (21:25, 26:28, 22:25) on the last day of the competition.
Despite the defeat, our national team finished second with four wins and 11 points, having secured their direct quota after the victory over Belarus in the penultimate match. Interestingly, the Bulgarian squad also included bronze medalists from the U18 European Championship in Italy in July, where our national team lost to the future champion Poland in the semifinals before winning third place.
Why, however, did Bulgaria qualify after Russia won the tournament?
The reason lies in the special regulations of the European Confederation (CEV), introduced after the decision to allow Russia and Belarus to participate in international youth competitions.
According to the rules, if Russia or Belarus wins a Balkan Volleyball Association qualification tournament, the winner receives a direct quota, but the BVA also retains its own spot for the European finals. This is granted to the best-ranked team from the association’s member countries.
This was exactly the case in Sofia. Russia finished first with five wins and 15 points, and Bulgaria remained second with four wins and 11 points. Our national team, however, was the best-ranked BVA representative and thus received a separate direct quota.
In this way, the qualification in Sofia produced two teams with guaranteed participation in the European finals – Russia and Bulgaria.
Euro 2027 U20 will be held in Croatia and Montenegro
The 2027 U20 European Championship will take place from July 21 to 30 with the participation of 16 national teams. Croatia and Montenegro will be the hosts, and the matches will be played in Osijek and Podgorica.
The development of the qualification in Yerevan shows how quickly the situation can change even for one of the strongest European volleyball schools.
Just three months after Jacek Nawrocki led Poland to the U18 title, a squad with some of the European champions and other promising young players found themselves forced to seek a second path to the next continental championship.
While the Poles will have to fight for a place in the finals in January, the Bulgarian national team can now focus their preparation on the championship in Croatia and Montenegro.
Source: www.bing.com
