The summer season for male water polo national teams will conclude next week. The Elite European U18 Championships will be held in Oradea, Romania, from August 18 to 24. Simultaneously, Division 1 of the U18 Europeans will take place in Rio Maior, Portugal. Division 1 serves as a qualification tournament for the 2027 U18 Europeans, as earlier announced, as the competition system has been changed.
The tournament in Oradea is the first European U18 Championships in nearly 20 years. The European Youth Water Polo Championships were inaugurated in 1983. Until 2007, it was a competition for the 18-year-old players and younger. From 2008 to 2023, the tournaments featured teams composed of U17 players. In a new Olympic cycle, the age limit for players has been restored to 18 years.
The competition format is the same as at every European and World age-group championships in recent years – the top eight teams will play in Groups A and B (informally called Sub-division 1). They have secured spots in the knockout round, where they will be joined by the best four teams from Groups C and D (Sub-division 2).
Sixteen nations that participated in the previous European U17 Championship, held in Manisa (Turkiye) in 2023, return to the stage in Oradea: Greece, Serbia, Spain, Hungary, Montenegro, Italy, Croatia, Netherlands, Turkiye, Germany, Malta, France, Romania, Georgia, Ukraine, and Poland.
Two years ago, Greece won the gold medal, Serbia took silver, and Spain finished in third place. However, the results and the standings in Manisa can’t be the basis for the predictions of the teams’ chances in Oradea.
The upcoming tournament in Romania will be the first major competition for players born in 2007 and later. Most participants will be making their debuts at a continental or intercontinental championship. For example, last year, Hungary defeated Serbia 12:10 in the final of the 2024 World U18 Championships in Buenos Aires, where Montenegro earned bronze. Only six players from the gold-medal match in Buenos Aires (three from Hungary and three from Serbia) arrived in Oradea.
Additionally, there have been no preparation tournaments this summer for the European U18 teams, leaving teams unfamiliar with each other, except for those who have faced off in friendly matches. Consequently, it is challenging for head coaches to assess the strengths of most opponents.
Despite these uncertainties, nearly all teams in Groups A and B will be contenders for medals for sure. In addition to the “European Big Seven”—Greece, Hungary, Serbia, Spain, Croatia, Montenegro, and Italy—the Netherlands will also play in the “upper house”. The Dutch male junior and youth teams have shown significant improvement at major competitions in recent years, so it would not be surprising if the Netherlands upset some of the traditional favorites.
The presence of many unknown factors could make the championships quite exciting.
European U18 Men’s Championships, Elite Division (Oradea, Romania, August 18 – 24), Groups
Sub-division 1
Group A: Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands.
Group B: Serbia, Spain, Montenegro, Croatia.
Sub-division 2
Group C: Turkiye, France, Romania, Poland.
Group D: Germany, Malta, Georgia, Ukraine.
The winners and the 2nd-placed teams in groups A and B will qualify for the quarterfinals directly. The third-placed and fourth-placed teams from these groups will play against the top four teams from the “lower house” in the crossover round, according to the following schedule: 3A – 2C, 4A – 1C, 3B – 2D, 4 B – 1D.
Day (August 18), schedule (all times are CET)
Group A: Greece – Italy (12:30), Hungary – Netherlands (15:00)
Group B: Serbia – Montenegro (16:30), Spain – Croatia (20:30)
Group C: France – Poland (08:00), Turkiye – Romania (18:00)
Group D: Germany – Georgia (09:30), Malta – Ukraine (11:00)
European U18 Men’s Championships, Division 1 (Rio Major, Portugal, August 18 – 24)
Thirteen teams will take part in Division 1. The top two teams from the tournament in Rio Major will be promoted to the Elite Division at the next European U18 Championships, replacing the teams ranked in 15th and 16th places at the Oradea tournament.
The teams are split into four groups – two groups of four, one of three, and one of only two teams. Finland, which was drawn into Group D. However, the Finnish team won’t come to Portugal, leaving the home team and Lithuania as the only two teams in that group.
The group winners will advance to the quarterfinals directly, while 2nd-placed and 3rd-placed teams will meet in the crossover round.
Group A: Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Moldova.
Group B: Bulgaria, Switzerland, Ireland, and Denmark.
Group C: Israel, Great Britain, Belgium, and Austria.
Group D: Lithuania and Portugal.
More articles about the European Men’s U17/U18 Championships
