August and September 2021, Women’s Volleyball Championship – what you need to know to organize the trip.

The Women’s European Volleyball Championship is held every two years at the turn of August and September. 2021 is the year of such championships.

Once again, they will be held in four different countries. This time, at least, these are countries from one region.

Additionally, they are beautiful places worth visiting.

Where, when, where to buy a ticket, how to get there, what to see? All the necessary information in the article below.

Women’s European Volleyball Championship 2021, basic information

When?

The tournament will take place from August 18 to September 4, 2021.

Where?

The tournament will take place in four host countries: Bulgaria (Plovdiv), Romania (Cluj-Napoca), Croatia (Zadar) and Serbia (Belgrade).

Group phase

It is scheduled for August 18-26, matches will be held in all host cities.

The exact schedule of matches is available at this link.

Knockout stage

One-eighth and one-quarter of the final will be held between August 28 and September 1 in Plovdiv and Belgrade. Four 1/8 matches and two 1/4 in each of the cities mentioned.

In 1/8 group A connects with group C, group B with D, in the standard way, the winner of the group with the fourth team: A1 with C4, A2 with C3, B4 with D1, etc.

The finals

September 3rd-4th, which is Friday and Saturday.

Fortunately (for traveling fans) both semi-finals and medal matches are in the same city, Belgrade. Semi-finals on Friday, bronze and gold matches on Saturday.

Tickets

Tickets are available on four different pages, depending on the country. Links lead to pages from here.

Unfortunately, due to the covid situation it is not possible to buy tickets to Zadar. For matches in Cluj-Napoca you can, but with restrictions, you must have a vaccination certificate or a test.

Tickets for group games and the 1/8 and 1/4 phase can be purchased for as little as EUR 5-8.

The semi-finals and finals cost EUR 10-50, depending on the category, the price for one day, i.e. two matches.

The good news is that tickets for almost all matches are still available (report from the beginning of the championship), even for the final, and also for group matches of Polish team.

Halls

The tournament will take place in four arenas.

The 8,000-capacity arena in Zadar, named after the legendary Croatian basketball player Krešimir Ćośić.

The hall in Cluj-Napoca is the largest hall in Romania, with a capacity of 10,000 spectators, it hosts sports competitions and concerts.

The hall in Plovdiv, where Polish team plays, is an arena opened in 2015 and built on the site of the old velodrome. Currently, it also serves as a velodrome, the largest in Bulgaria and the entire Balkans.

The capacity is 4,800-7,500 spectators, depending on the event.

The largest arena of the championship is the one in Belgrade (Štark Arena). Its capacity is, depending on the event, even 20,000-25,000 spectators.

It was opened in 2007 and since then has been the arena of many important sporting events and concerts.

How to get

There is an airport in Plovdiv, but currently there are not many flights there. City can be easily reached from Sofia airport. Another option is to fly to Burgas or Varna. Until the end of September, flights from Poland are available from several airports (mainly Ryanair).

To Belgrade just fly to Belgrade airport (from Warsaw by LOT).

What to see before the matches?

You cannot buy tickets to Zadar, but if someone would like to drop by anyway, here you will find more detailed information about the city – how to get there and what to see.

Plovdiv is quite a touristic city. Maybe not very famous yet, but in 2019 it was the European Capital of Culture. It is one of the oldest cities in Europe, with preserved monuments from Roman times, such as the Amphitheater and mosaics. The city also has an interesting and beautiful Old Town. You can also go on an excursion around the city along the route of the vineyards.

Belgrade is a city a bit overlooked. I found it absolutely worth a visit because of the atmosphere. Belgrade is a river, actually rivers. Kalemegdan fortress, with a park and a view, the churches of Saint Sava and Mark and the artistic street of Skadarlija. It is also a place known for parties in various styles, often in pubs on boats.

It’s a great idea for such a weekend volleyball trip!