The 2024 EU Nations Men’s Water Polo Cup, held from November 7 to 10, delivered an unforgettable spectacle for fans of the sport. Hosted by the Czech water polo federation, the tournament brought together 12 national teams.
Teams from Czechia, England, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Austria, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine, and Wales competed in this event, with a total of 30 games. The competition format began with a group stage. Teams were divided in four groups of three teams each, playing in a round-robin system. The top two teams from each group advanced to the play-off stage, including quarterfinals, semifinals, and placement matches. Meanwhile, the third-placed teams competed in a separate group to determine their final rankings.
The highlight of the tournament came in the gold-medal match, where Ukraine played against Portugal. The game ended dramatically with score 14:14, then spectators saw heart-stopping penalty shoot-out, where Portugal gained victory with a final score 16:18.
In the bronze-medal match, Lithuania faced Slovakia and delivered an impressive performance with 15:8 victory to claim third place.
At the tournament individual trophies were also awarded. Pedro Sousa from Portugal was named The Most Valuable Player. Michal Diakonów from Poland received the Best Goalkeeper award and Mladen Savic from Austria took home the Top Scorer title, having netted 20 goals over the five games in the tournament.
The final standings:
