Portugal has qualified for the final phase of the 2026 European Volleyball Championship, achieving direct qualification with the 10th place achieved at Euro2023 and the 12th position in the European ranking, the Portuguese federation announced today.
The final stage of Euro2026 will be held in four countries, with Romania and Bulgaria already confirmed as hosts and the other two yet to be announced, which should be Finland, Italy and Slovenia.
The national team will be appearing in the final phase of a European Championship for the eighth time, and fourth in a row, after 1948, 1951, 2005, 2011, 2019, 2021 and 2023.
In the last edition, organized by Italy, Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Israel, Portugal was one win away from making history, i.e. qualifying for the quarter-finals, but their aspirations were halted by Ukraine (3-0).
The next European Championship will be held in 2026 rather than 2025, following the resolution of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), which decided that, from 2026, all continental competitions will be held in even-numbered years instead of odd-numbered ones.
The team coached by João José will not play in the qualifying round for Euro2026, qualifying directly for the final phase due to their position in Euro2023 (10th place) and their position in the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) ranking, in which they are 12th.
