Wednesday, 11th December 2024

Croatia Confirmed as Host for 2024 European Water Polo Championship

The European Water Polo Championship, initially scheduled for January 3-17, 2024 in Netanya, has been relocated to Croatia due to the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Following the cancellation in Netanya, Berlin emerged as a potential host before Zagreb took the lead, receiving the Croatian Government's approval.

The Croatian Government announced that two million euros would be allocated from the 2023 state budget and projections for 2024 and 2025 to co-finance the championship. These funds will be redistributed within the budget positions of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports.

Official confirmation from the European Swimming League (LEN) is awaited.

This championship is particularly significant as it serves as a qualifying event for the Paris Olympic Games next summer. The European champion, or the highest-ranked team after Hungary, Greece, and France—who have already secured their Olympic spots—will qualify for the Olympics in Paris.

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The top three national teams from the European Championship will also qualify for the World Championship in Doha (February 2-18 next year), with Hungary, Greece, Spain, Serbia, Italy, and France having already secured their places.

This event holds importance for the Montenegrin team, which will play in Group A at the European Championship. Their group rivals include Spain, France, and Croatia. The top two teams will directly advance to the quarterfinals, while the third and fourth place teams will face the top two teams from Division 2 groups in the round of 16.

Montenegro’s Group A will cross paths in the round of 16 with teams from Group A of Division B, where Serbia is placed alongside Germany, Israel, and Malta.