Nail-biting victory brings Azerrail Baku to the top of the podium in Azerbaijan
VK Jihostroj České Budějovice returned to the throne in Czechia after a five-year absence
Defending Danish champions Odense collect their 12th title
Olympiacos Piraeus pick up their 32nd national title in Greece
Budva conquer the title in Montenegro for the sixth time in a row
Strumica 47&72 collect their seventh back-to-back and 11th overall title in North Macedonia
ACH Volley Ljubljana add the 20th Slovenian championship crown to their collection
Hylte Halmstad grab the fourth back-to-back and 12th overall Swedish title
The men’s volleyball champions of eight European countries – Azerbaijan, Czechia, Denmark, Greece, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Slovenia and Sweden – celebrated success and lifted their trophies from Monday through Thursday of this week.
AZERBAIJAN
Azerrail Baku celebrated as Azerbaijani champions on Monday at the Baku Sports Palace after a nail-biting 3-2 (29-27, 25-27, 19-25, 32-30, 15-13) victory over Murov Az Terminal Baku in the final (pictured in the main photo; credits: Azerbaijan Volleyball Federation). Neftchi Baku beat MOIK Baku to claim the bronze.
Azerrail’s 26-year-old Russian opposite Sergey Platanenkov claimed the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award and was joined on the Dream Team by setter Mahdi Ablou (Murov), outside hitters Andrey Melnikov (Azerrail) and Vladislav Kunchenko (Murov), middle blockers Mehdi Jafarvand (Azerrail) and Mohsen Vazehi (Neftchi), and libero Emil Abdullayev (Neftchi).
Azerrail Baku’s team roster
CZECHIA
VK Jihostroj České Budějovice returned to the throne in Czechia after a five-year absence, to collect their 11th national title. They started the best-of-five final playoff against Lvi Prague with a 3-1 (25-20, 25-23, 21-25, 25-21) away win on 17 April and doubled their lead with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-16) sweep of the second match on 20 April at home. Lvi fought back in the series with a 3-2 (25-18, 21-25, 20-25, 25-15, 15-10) home victory on 23 April. Thursday evening’s fourth match offered an even more dramatic five-set battle, in which Jihostroj triumphed after a 3-2 (25-21, 22-25, 25-17, 24-26, 17-15) win. The bronze went to Kladno, who scored two wins over Trox Pribram in the third-place playoff.
Jihostroj Ceske Budejovice’s team roster
DENMARK
Defending champions Odense won the national title in Denmark for the 12th time in the club’s history. On Tuesday, they closed the final playoff against Nordenskov UIF after three matches. They opened the series with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 25-18) away victory on 16 April, doubled their lead with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-20) comeback at home on 19 April, and finished the job with a 3-1 (25-14, 18-25, 25-23, 25-18) win on the road. Gentofte Volley took the bronze after winning the best-of-three third-place playoff against Vestsjaelland Korsor in three matches.
Vestsjaelland’s 24-year-old American opposite Jacob Steele was voted MVP of the season. On the Dream Team he was in the company of setter Christopher Cons (Nordenskov), outside hitters Jonathan Carlson (Nordenskov) and Nikolaj Hjorth (Odense), middle blockers Rasmus Mikelsons (Gentofte Volley) and Sebastian Dumbuyah (Nordenskov), libero Jonathan Phillips (Ikast KFUM) and coach Marty Collins (Odense).
Odense’s team roster
GREECE
Olympiacos Piraeus added the 32nd national title to their impressive showcase and celebrated their 14th golden double in history after downing archrivals Panathinaikos Athens by 3-1 in wins for the 2024 trophy. Olympiacos edged ahead in the best-of-five series with two straight-set victories: 3-0 (25-23, 32-20, 25-17) away on 11 April and 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 26-24) at home on 15 April, but two thrilling five-setters followed. Panathinaikos stayed alive in the series with a narrow 3-2 (25-15, 21-25, 20-25, 25-20, 19-17) win at home on 18 April, but not for long… At their own hall on Monday, Olympiacos sealed the deal in a 3-2 (25-17, 25-10, 20-25, 21-25, 15-12) spectacle. The MVP honours went to Olympiacos’s 34-year-old middle blocker Mitar Djuric. In the best-of-five semifinals, Olympiacos managed to overcome Nea Smyrni Milon in five games, while Panathinaikos knocked out PAOK Thessaloniki in four.
Olympiacos Piraeus’s team roster
MONTENEGRO
Budva conquered the national title in Montenegro for the sixth time in a row. In the best-of-five final playoff, they outpaced Buducnost Podgorica by 3-1 in wins. Budva delivered a 3-0 (25-16, 25-23, 25-18) sweep of the first match at home on 12 April, but Buducnost leveled the series after a narrow 3-2 (16-25, 25-22, 26-24, 20-25, 16-14) home win on 16 April. Budva reacted with two four-set wins – 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-16, 25-19) at home on 20 April and 3-1 (25-13, 28-26, 23-25, 26-18) away on Wednesday – to celebrate as champions. With two straight-set victories each, Budva and Buducnost won their semifinal encounters with Mornar Bar and Jedinstvo Bjelo Pole, respectively. Volleyball Federation of Montenegro President Cvetko Pajkovic handed the trophy to the winners.
Budva’s team roster
NORTH MACEDONIA
Strumica 47&72 collected their seventh consecutive and 11th overall title in North Macedonia. They outplayed Štip UGD by 3-1 in wins in the best-of-five championship series. They won the first match at home by 3-1 (25-19, 25-18, 23-25, 25-22) on 16 April, but lost the second one away by 3-1 (30-28, 17-25, 25-20, 25-21) on 19 April. Another four-setter at home, 3-1 (25-18, 15-25, 25-17, 25-15), gave them an edge on 22 April. On Thursday in Štip, the two teams engaged in yet another four-set duel before Strumica could celebrate a 3-1 (25-15, 25-21, 21-25, 25-17) victory. In the best-of-three semi-finals, Strumica swept their series against Univerzitet vo Tetovo in two matches, while Štip recovered from losing the first game to Rabotnicki 71&22 Skopje and won the next two to advance to the final.
Strumica 47&72’s team roster
SLOVENIA
For the 20th time in the club’s history and the third consecutive season, ACH Volley Ljubljana celebrated as Slovenian champions on Wednesday, closing the best-of-five championship series against Calcit Kamnik after three matches. A 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-22) win at home on 18 April gave ACH the lead in the final. They doubled it with a 3-0 (30-28, 25-22, 25-23) sweep of the away match on 21 April and completed the job with a hard-fought 3-2 (30-28, 24-26, 25-20, 22-25, 15-12) victory at home on 24 April. i-Vent Maribor took the bronze after overcoming Panvita Pomgrad Murska Sobota by 2-1 in wins in the third-place playoff.
ACH Volley Ljubljana’s team roster
SWEDEN
Hylte Halmstad celebrated their fourth back-to-back and 12th overall title in Sweden after turning the best-of-five championship playoff against Floby around from losing the first match. On 13 April, Floby came back from two sets down to produce a 3-2 (25-27, 23-25, 25-23, 25-15, 15-10) home victory and edge ahead in the series, but Hylte reacted with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-19) sweep of the second match, which they hosted in Halmstad. The next two games offered five-set battles and Hylte persevered to win both and triumph as champions: 3-2 (25-20, 12-25, 26-24, 12-25, 15-12) away on 20 April and 3-2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-16, 25-18, 15-12) at home on Wednesday evening.
Hylte Halmstad’s team roster