2025

Line-up announced as continental forces prepare for new #CLVolleyW season

News

Article Mon, Jul 14 2025

Europe’s top women’s volleyball clubs are once again eagerly awaiting the outcome of the Drawing of Lots for the upcoming season of the CEV Champions League Volley, the continent’s premier club competition.

For the women’s tournament, CEV has confirmed that 20 teams will compete in the 4th round. Of these, 15 teams have already secured their places, while the remaining five spots will be filled by the winners of the 3rd round, which will be decided in September doubleheader matches

The Drawing of Lots is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 15 July, in Luxembourg, at 12:00 CEST. This event will determine the pool compositions as the continent’s elite clubs prepare for another thrilling campaign in pursuit of Europe’s most prestigious club title.

Italy stands out with four formidable teams in the main draw. A. Carraro Prosecco DOC Conegliano, perennial title favorites and reigning champions in the past two seasons, return alongside Savino Del Bene Scandicci, Numia Vero Volley Milano, and Igor Gorgonzola Novara. These clubs have consistently reached the latter stages of the competition, with Conegliano and Novara both having lifted the trophy in recent years.

Türkiye is another dominant force, fielding three four top-tier teams: Eczacibasi Istanbul, VakifBank Istanbul, Fenerbahçe Medicana Istanbul and Ankara Zeren Spor Kulübü. While the three Istanbul teams are perennial contenders, Ankara Zeren Spor Kulübü will look to represent the country with grit.

Three Polish sides - ŁKS Commercecon Łódź, Grot Budowlani Łódź and Developres Rzeszów – are also at the start, as well as two teams from Germany – Dresdner SC and SSC Palmberg Schwerin. Serbia (OK Železničar Lajkovac), France (Levallois Paris Saint Cloud) and Romania (CS Volei Alba Blaj), will also have one team each at the start.

Four more spots are open, with te full line-up for the season decided after the end of the 3rd round, when the four winners from the preliminary rounds doubleheaders will make it to the 4th round.

Two wildcards have been handed this season to Ankara Zeren Spor Kulübü and Igor Gorgonzola Novara.

The two recipients of the wildcards available for the women’s competition were awarded the places, as the CEV Board of Administration opted to strike a balance to ensure highly competitive matches, while taking into account the marketability of the CEV Champions League Volley across Europe and even further beyond, so the market potential of the applicants as well as of their respective home countries played a primary role as well in coming to a well-informed decision.

#CLVolleyW