Bulgarian volleyball has once again surprised the world, taking down the reigning European champions, Poland, with a 3:2 set score (25:20, 31:29, 25:23, 25:19, 20:18) in a thriller during the final fifth round of EuroVolley 2026. In "Arena 8888," the "Lions" concluded the first phase of the tournament, which is being hosted across Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, and Finland.
Despite this success, Gianlorenzo Blangiardini's squad failed to meet their objective of finishing second in the standings to secure an easier path through the knockout stages. Consequently, Bulgaria may once again face the lineup led by Nikola Grbić. The "Lions" sit in third place with 11 points (4 wins and one loss), trailing Ukraine, who holds second place with 12 points and a better set ratio. Poland has already guaranteed first place with the same record of four wins and one loss, but with 13 points.
In the round of 16, the Bulgarian team will battle Germany on September 19 (Saturday) in Sofia at 19:00, while Poland will face Latvia three hours later.
At the start of the match, strong serves proved crucial for both teams, but the Poles demonstrated superior strength in service and blocking, allowing them to secure a 5-point lead. The symbolic guests struggled to respond during reception, while the reigning European champions thrived through the center. Inconsistent Bulgarian serving made the task even harder for the "Lions," allowing the hosts to take the first set 25:20.
The "Polish squad's" tradition of powerful serving was reaffirmed at the beginning of the second set, as they built a 5-point cushion. However, the "Tricolors" showed character and narrowed the gap to 2 points before Simeon Nikolov leveled the score at 15:15 with his serve. Although the Poles reached game point five times, Martin Atanasov delivered an ace to give the Bulgarians a 29:28 lead. Denislav Bardarov regained the lead for the world runners-up, but a block by Alex Grozdanov completed the Bulgarian comeback, ending the set at 31:29.
The start of the third set saw a balanced struggle up to 4:4, but errors in the Bulgarian camp allowed the European champions to pull ahead by 4 points. The "Lions," however, relied once again on their serves and blocks, leading to a full turnaround. Although Poland leveled the score at 21:21, the Bulgarian team managed to win 25:23 following a Polish reception error.
The fourth set began similarly, with the symbolic guests leading by 3 points for a period. However, the Poles ramped up the intensity, especially in reception, and through heavy blocking, they extended the lead to 6 points. Despite powerful attacks from the reigning runners-up bringing them back within 3 points, the "Polish squad" held firm through their service and won 25:19, leveling the match.
In the deciding fifth set, Alexander Nikolov and Bardarov pushed Bulgaria to a 4:0 lead through their successful attacks. The elder of the Nikolov brothers tormented the Polish reception, and his serving extended the lead to +5. After a back-and-forth exchange and a tie at 13:13, followed by an out by Alex Nikolov, the opponents took a 15:14 lead. Alexander Nikolov struck again to make it 16:15, and after further ties and errors, Bardarov secured a third game point. Although the score was tied again at 18:18, a powerful attack by Alexander Nikolov and a magnificent block sent the arena into ecstasy, finishing the set 20:18 for Bulgaria.
The most productive player in the match was Alexander Nikolov with 36 points. Denislav Bardarov scored 24 points, and Alex Grozdanov added 12. For the Polish team, Kamil Semeniuk shone with 22 points, Bartłomiej Bollecz delivered 16, Tomasz Fornal added 15, Bartłomiej Lemanski recorded 12, and Szymon Jakubiak had 11 points.
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