NEWS
EFC Day 1 review
The European Footvolley Championships first day has ended and we have had an amazing tournament so far - with favourites loosing important games and old legends proving experience is important in the game of footvolley.
The European Footvolley Championships first day has ended and we have had an amazing tournament so far - with favourites loosing important games and old legends proving experience is important in the game of footvolley.
The qualification and women tournament
The tournament already started on wednesday with the womens tournament and the mens qualification tournament.
Women group stage
In this years competition we have seven teams. Netherlands and Sweden came with two teams and in addition we have teams from Austria, Germany and and Italy.
After the group stage, quarter final and semi final we have a final tomorrow between Netherlands 1 and Germany. We can't wait to see who comes out the stronger team.
All the results from the women tournament can be found here.
Mens qualification
With 15 teams pre qualified for the main tournament there was one more spot up for grabs for the winner of the qualification tournament. This was a high level tournament with a lot of great games. In the end France 2 came out as the winners after a great final against Spain 2. They won 18-11 in a spectacular final.
Lucien Alessandri with a shark dink at the net.
SEE ALL RESULTS: Challonge.com
Mens group stage
Group D - champions lose against Germany
The group stage had a lot of interesting games and the biggest surprise was probably Germany winning 18-16 over the reigning champions Portugal 1. Mo Obeid and Joel Nißlein came out strong and never looked back - even bringing the usual shark attacks into the mix. Nelson Pereira and Miguel Pinheiro did not expect this level from the Germans and had to settle for second place in group D after Germany. As the winner of the group Germany advance straight to the semi finals and can rest one extra game. Congratulations to Mo and Joel.
Group A - local heros and old legends strike back
Another big surprise was the level of consistency we saw from the Swiss footvolley legends Nils Fehr and Benedikt Zwyssig in group A. After loosing their first game to the Austrian first team 18-11, they came back strong to beat Netherlands 18-14 and the Austrian second team 18-5. That secured them a second place in the group and they now face Greece and not Portugal 2 in the quarter final. The brothers Klemens Hofmann-Wellenhof and Jakob Hofmann-Wellenhof representing Austria 1 were unbeatable and came through the group stage victorious. The fans gave them a standing ovation and we expect great things from the local heros in the finals.
Group C - last in first out
The strongest group was group C with Spain, France 2, Italy and Norway. France 2 had a tough way to the group stage coming in as the winners of the qualification tournament the day before - playing 5 games. They continue to play better and better, won all their games in the group and clinched the number one spot. France 1 should be afraid of losing the number 1 spot in France. Spain, the bronze medal winners from 2017, showed their skills and secured the second place.
Group B - good teams and low energy
Footvolley is all about fair play and doing your best to win every game. France 1 and Portugal 2 ended up in a situation where they would benefit from not winning the group - due to Germany unexpectedly winning group D. This resulted in at very strange matchup were it seemed most difficult NOT to win the points. The audience went silent and we could hear a pin drop in the arena. In the end France 1 came out as the winners and do not have to play the 1/8 final - but meet reigning champion Portugal 1. Greece once again got through to the final stage and meets Switzerland in the 1/8 final tomorrow.
Results from the draw
Footvolley Austria invited to a press conference on wednesday May 30th to talk about the upcoming European Footvolley Championship (EFC) to be hosted in downtown Graz. The official draw also took place to decide the groups for the mens and womens main tournament - in addition to the mens qualification tournament.
The city of Graz, Footvolley Austria and the main sponsor Energie Steiermark hosted a press conference on wednesday May 30th to talk about the upcoming European Footvolley Championship (EFC) in downtown Graz. The official draw also took place to decide the groups for the mens and womens main tournament - in addition to the mens qualification tournament.
16 spots up for grab
In this years EFC there are 13 member nations qualified for the group stage. The host nation Austria and reigning champion Portugal will have two teams. That makes the total 15 teams with 16 spots available in the tournament.
Every member nation can send a team to the qualification tournament and the last team will be decided in a qualification tournament where the winner takes the last spot in the tournament.
Our new members Sweden and Israel are not eligible to enter the tournament directly, but they will both send a team to the qualification tournament. Next year they will be pre-qualified for the main competition.
Results from the mens main tournament draw
The Finals bracket looks as follows:
Results from the Qualification draw
Results from the womens main tournament draw
A live video stream from the whole press conference and the draw can be found on Footvolley Austria's Facebook page.
We welcome Israel to the EFVL family
Following the inclusion of Sweden a couple of weeks ago we are happy to announce Israel as a new member of the European Footvolley League. Israel becomes the 15th member after a unanimous vote from the member nations.
Following the inclusion of Sweden a couple of weeks ago we are happy to announce Israel as a new member of the European Footvolley League. Israel becomes the 15th member after a unanimous vote from the member nations.
About footvolley in Israel 🇮🇱
Israel is a country with a lot of footvolley players and a long-standing footvolley culture. There are over 200 active male footvolley players and about 20 women players - and growing.
Israel Footvolley Association (IFA) is well organized and puts a lot of focus on development. They really believe -like the EFVL- this sport is a life changer. There are footvolley programs around the country for both men and women, and of course youth players. They provide footvolley training to professional football clubs in the beginning of the season and there are projects for young kids of tough neighbourhoods.
On top Israel Footvolley Association organized a lot of high-quality tournaments in the past years: In 2016 they had a Rio Footvolley Qualification Tournament for the Rio Games with over 50 Israeli teams participating. There also was the Eilat World Championship with some of the best players from around the world. The same goes for the Haifa International Tournament. The national Israeli Footvolley League with 1st and 2nd division broadcasted weekly LIVE on television. Also the first ever Mixed Couples Footvolley Championship in Israel was held last year. In April 2018 Israel hosted the The Red Sea World event in Eilat which also attracted many European teams like e.g. our European Champions from Portugal Nelson & Miguel.
If you want to play footvolley in Israel you can find courts and players in Tel Aviv, Haifa, Eilat, Bat Yam, Ashdod, Rishon le Zion, Kfar Saba, Yavne and Herzeliya to name a few cities.
FIND OUT MORE: Visit Israel Footvolley on Facebook
“We are very happy to join the EFVL and we are looking forward to grow together with the european footvolley community. Israel is a big fan of the sport and we are certain that this step will help footvolley to flourish.”
Shalom Michaelshvili. Photo; Tal Shahar
Israel and the European Footvolley Championship (EFC)
With this late addition to the EFVL Israel has been invited to participate in the qualification tournament being organized the day prior to the first day of the EFC in Graz, Austria. Israel will also send a female team for the female tournament.
An action shot from the World Footvolley Tournament in Eilat 2018.
About the application process
Normal procedure for new EFVL memberships is that all member nations vote yes or no (one nation one vote). This can only happen at our annual meeting at the end of the year. New members will have to present themselves, and if voted Yes they will have to sign the statutes and the ethical code.
However, at the last meeting in Luzern 2017 we were preoccupied with officially founding EFVL under Swiss law. Unfortunately we did not have the time to address the question of new memberships.
Israel is now the 15th member after a unanimous but online vote, which is an exceptional situation. They have been waiting for 3 years, but the official signing will only take place in November 2018 when all the nations meet at our annual meeting.
Many countries want to be a part of EFVL, and we are eager to include more. In addition to the application from Israel we have interest from many more countries. Our administration department is looking into all of them and an important criteria is the footvolley culture in each country. Is there a footvolley history. Are they organized and how. Is there a national ranking open to all. Other criteria involved in the decision-making: geographical factors, safety of players and ambassadors, easy to travel and other practical matters. We also need to decide if a new member is an asset to the EFVL.
#welovefootvolley
We welcome Sweden to the EFVL family
We are happy to announce the inclusion of Sweden as a new member of the European Footvolley League. Sweden becomes the 14th member after a unanimous vote from the other nations.
We are happy to announce the inclusion of Sweden as a new member of the European Footvolley League. Sweden becomes the 14th member after a unanimous vote from the other nations.
About footvolley in Sweden 🇸🇪
Sweden is a nordic country with about 10 million people - most of them playing football, tennis or golf. However, footvolley is growing in popularity. Footvolley is mostly played in Malmö and Göteborg which are located in the south west of the country - close to the norwegian and danish border.
Malmö has good access to outdoor courts and an indoor arena with 3 courts for playing in the wintertime. Göteborg has fewer outdoor courts, but probably Europes best indoor arena with 16 courts - Beach Center.
Sweden has both male and female footvolley players and they have participated in a number of European tournaments in the past years. A female team also participated in the exhibition tournament in Rio in 2016.
“Sweden officially becoming a member of the European Footvolley League means a lot. This will put Sweden on the European footvolley map and it will help us promote the sport nationally and locally. We are looking forward to being an active part of the EFVL and the development of footvolley in Europe. ”
Sweden and the European Footvolley Championship (EFC)
With this late addition to the EFVL Sweden has been invited to participate in the qualification tournament being organized the day prior to the first day of the EFC in Graz, Austria. Sweden will also send a female team for the female tournament.
From the podium after the Scandinavian Footvolley Tour final in Malmö in 2013. Spain won with Netherlands on second. James Blondell and Per Ôgren from Sweden came in third.
About the application process
Normal procedure for new EFVL memberships is that all member nations vote yes or no (one nation one vote). This can only happen at our annual meeting at the end of the year. New members will have to present themselves, and if voted Yes they will have to sign the statutes and the ethical code.
However, at the last meeting in Luzern 2017 we were preoccupied with officially founding EFVL under Swiss law. Unfortunately we did not have the time to address the question of new memberships.
Sweden is now the 14th member after a unanimous but online vote, which is an exceptional situation. They have been waiting for 3 years, but the official signing will only take place in November 2018 when all the nations meet at our annual meeting.
Many countries want to be a part of EFVL, and we are eager to include more. In addition to the application from Sweden we have interest from 8 more countries. Our administration department is looking into all of them and an important criteria is the footvolley culture in each country. Is there a footvolley history. Are they organized and how. Is there a national ranking open to all. Other criteria involved in the decision-making: geographical factors, safety of players and ambassadors, easy to travel and other practical matters. We also need to decide if a new member is an asset to the EFVL.
We will release another new member nation shortly. Stay tuned.
World Footvolley Tournament in Eilat, Israel 🇮🇱
A lot of European men and women teams were involved in The World Red Sea Eilat Cup held in Eilat, Israel in mid march 2018. Reigning European champions Miguel Pinheiro & Nelson Pereira came up short in the final against Brazil, but delivered a good game against one of the best team in the world.
A lot of European men and women teams were involved in The World Red Sea Eilat Cup held in Eilat, Israel in mid march 2018. Reigning European champions Miguel Pinheiro & Nelson Pereira came up short in the final against Brazil, but delivered a good game against one of the best team in the world.
Portuguese and European champion Miguel Pinheiro with a shark block on Brazilian super star Eduardo Gasparini. The crowd witnessed a very high level in the final. Photo: Eilat Footvolley
Teams from around the world gathered in this traditional tournament and proved to be the biggest and most successful edition ever. Amongst the many countries who participated were; 🇬🇷Greece, 🇫🇷France, 🇳🇱Holland, 🇪🇸Spain, 🇵🇹Portugal, 🇳🇴Norway, 🇧🇷Brazil, 🇵🇾Paraguay, 🏴England, 🇦🇹Austria, 🇩🇪Germany, 🇺🇸USA and of course 🇮🇱Israel in the lineup.
It is nice to see the international footvolley family growing. It is especially nice to see so many women now finding their way into this amazing sport.
The tournament was administrated by Eilat Footvolley, Luiz Gomes and the help of the Israel Footvolley Association (IFA). The knock-out stages were broadcasted live on national television on Israel's channel 'One'; Israels most accredited sports channel.
Some of the best teams in the world participated in the tournament and in addition a few of Israels own best players like Maor Haas and Pascal Schmidt who won the European Groningen Cup and made it to the quarter finals in Eilat, as well as Israels current number one team, Oren Zuberi and Ron Ben Yishay who took 4th place in Eilat this year.
Results mens tournament
🏆1. place: 🇧🇷Brazil: Eduardo Gasparini & Marcellino Schiling
🥈2. place: 🇵🇹Portugal: Miguel Pinheiro & Nelson Pereira
🥉3. place: 🇵🇾Paraguay: Fernando Lugo & Victor Martinez
4. place: 🇮🇱Israel 1: Oren Zubeari & Ron Ben Vishay
Results womens tournament
🏆1. place: 🇧🇷Brazil: Natalia Guitler & Josy Souza
🥈2. place: 🇳🇱Holland 1: Evelyn Dobbinga & Isabel Harrysson Rodrigues
🥉3. place: 🇩🇪Germany: Rebecca Gabriell & Carolin Schultze
4. place : 🇳🇱Holland : Nynke Karrenbeld & Selma van Berkel
In the coming year another footvolley national league will take place and is expected to reach new heights in Israel. Besides the league there are many more tournaments planned for men and women. Educational and social projects are being worked on in order to keep the already rapidly growing community of footvolley players evolving, with a special focus on building interest from younger players.
The EFVL congratulates Israel with a well organized tournament with a very high level and the inclusion of so many EFVL-members.
Winners Eduardo Gasparini & Marcellino Schiling and Natalia Guitler & Josy Souza Photo: Eilat Footvolley
Host city for European Footvolley Championship 2018 is Graz, Austria
We are pleased to announce that the host city for the European Footvolley Championship 2018 is Graz, Austria. It will take place in the city center, Hauptplatz Graz, between June 6th and June 9th.
We are pleased to announce that the host city for the European Footvolley Championship 2018 is Graz, Austria. It will take place in the city center, Hauptplatz Graz, between June 6th and June 9th.
Graz has hosted big footvolley tournaments for many years and we are excited to see what Graz has to offer us come June. Footvolley Austria has a lot of good players and they work a lot to recruit new players and make the sport visible in Austria.
A quick comment from the president of Footvolley Austria:
“We are proud to be the host of the major tournament in Europe this year. Although we have organized an international event each year since 2012, this time it will be something special, not only because it will be the 2018 main event in Europe, but also because we wil be able to have the event right in the center in Graz in front of the city hall.”
He continues: "The city of Graz and the team of Footvolley Austria is already excited to welcome Europe's best teams this summer. Apart from the offcial competition, there will also be a training camp for players from all over Europe to meet, train together and be part of the European Footvolley Championship 2018".
You do not want to miss this!
This is the third European Footvolley Championship and it has previously been arranged in Schwäbisch Gmund, Germany (2016) and Albufeira, Portugal (2017). In 2016 France took the title just ahead of Portugal, and in 2017 it was the other way around; Portugal won in an exciting final against France.
EFVL President Ulli Hulsmans is very pleased and has a long history playing footvolley in Graz.
“Graz feels like a 2nd home to me since my first footvolley partner Jan-Pieter Martens (ex-Sturm Graz) introduced me to this lovely city.”
More info about location, tournament structure and media package will be be available soon.
Congratulations Graz, and all footvolley fans.
Are you coming?
European Footvolley League officially incorporated under Swiss law
The European Footvolley League (EFVL) was officially incorporated under Swiss law on Sunday 26th of November at Hotel Schweizerhof in Lucerne.
The European Footvolley League (EFVL) was officially incorporated under Swiss law on Sunday 26th November at Hotel Schweizerhof in Lucerne.
Representatives from eleven of the thirteen member countries (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain Switzerland & the UK) were in attendance and co-signed the agreed EFVL Statutes and minutes of this first Congress which took place on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th November 2017.
Executive Committee
The President of the EFVL for the next two years is Ulli Hulsmans (Belgium) supported by Vice-President Carlos Coimbra (Portugal) and Chief Executive of Finance Erik Drenth (Netherlands) who head up a seven man Executive Committee.
About EFVL
The EFVL was founded in Rome in May 2015 with a mission to grow and promote footvolley throughout Europe. It now comprises thirteen member countries with others poised to join and the official incorporation as a legal body in Switzerland will help the EFVL engage with partners and develop the sport at a continental level. At the 1st EFVL Congress in Lucerne various departments were established to look after the main activities of the EFVL going forward, including Sports Development (grassroots), Marketing and Competitions.
The host
Many thanks to Paul Winiker and the city of Lucerne for hosting the delegates of the EFVL, including a visit to the oldest footvolley club in the world, the Lido Lucerne, where footvolley has been played since 1935.
Italian National Qualifying Tournament
The Italian National Qualifying tournament is open to all players, both men and women.
The tournament will take place May 13th and 14th 2017 at the Sports Center and FCO Beach Center of Fiumicino (Rome). The qualifying event will be valid for the European Footvolley Championship in Albufeira, Portugal and for all events tagged European Footvolley 2017.
Registration must be sent in by May 10, 2017.
To register, please send an e-mail to: info@playfootvolley.it
Qualifica Italiana valida per il Campionato European Footvolley League di Albufeira, Portogallo.
L'evento e'aperto a tutti gli italiani di passaporto, per il settore maschile e femminile, e si svolgerà nella data del 13 e 14 Maggio presso la struttura FCO Beach Center di Fiumicino.
Graz host city for the EFC 2018
The EFVL has chosen the city of Graz in Austria as host city for the 3rd edition of the European Footvolley Championship in 2018.
For a few weeks the rumors have been growing, but today we are proud to make it official. The EFVL has chosen the city of Graz in Austria as host city for the 3rd edition of the European Footvolley Championship in 2018.
This decision is based on the strong case the Austrian Footvolley Federation built in which they demonstrate their motivation and vast experience in organising with a keen eye for every detail. We strongly believe Graz will be a worthy successor in line with the great host cities Schwäbisch Gmünd in 2016 and Albufeira in 2017.
The Austrian Footvolley Federation has a long history of organising international tournaments; 2017 marks the eighth in Austria, the last six being held in the city of Graz. The best players from Brazil and across Europe have enjoyed the hospitality of Graz, the second biggest city of Austria, located in the southern part of the country. Since the first event in 2009, the players have developed a strong affinity with the residents of this beautiful and lively city and look forward to this highlight of the international footvolley calendar.
The event location will be the main square of Graz in the heart of the old city Centre, one of the most beautiful locations in Austria receiving more than 100.000 visitors per month. Around the event location, there will be a stadium and an event village. Apart from the main event, plans are made to have a whole week packed with various footvolley events including a women’s and a youth competition as well as workshops and tryouts for school classes and football clubs, an exhibition with the presence of former football players and a training camp.
An official press conference will be held later this year.
City of Albufeira to host 2017 European Footvolley Championship
The official announcement of the host city for the 2017 European Footvolley Championship was made today, and the honor goes to Albufeira, Portugal.
The official announcement of the host city for the 2017 European Footvolley Championship was made today (monday 13th of february 2017), and the honor goes to Albufeira, Portugal.