Back for More: Chasing #CLVolleyM Glory in Torino
News
The CEV Champions League Volley 2026 Men reaches its climax this week in Torino, where the ultimate crown in club Volleyball will be on the line. Lifting the #CLVolleyM trophy remains the greatest dream and defining achievement at club level – a moment every player and coach hopes to experience at least once in their career. Among this year’s Final Four participants, only the defending champions from Perugia know what it feels like to stand on top of Europe as a club. Yet across all four teams are players and coaches who have already experienced both the joy of winning the continent’s most prestigious club trophy and the heartbreak of falling just short. Now, they return to the biggest stage hungry for another chance at glory and ready to give everything to keep their dream alive in Torino.
Although it may be hard to believe, last season’s #CLVolleyM triumph was the first in the history of Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia. Since then, the Italian powerhouse has added a third domestic championship title to its collection and now returns to the Final Four with a chance to defend the European crown. In their 10th Champions League campaign, Perugia could become only the second Italian club after Trentino (2009, 2010, 2011) to win back-to-back titles in Europe’s top-tier competition. Despite a trophy cabinet filled with domestic and international success, the club had to wait until last year to finally conquer Europe. Yet among their stars is one player who seems almost unbeatable on the biggest stage.
Kamil Semeniuk boasts a perfect record in #CLVolleyM finals. The 29-year-old outside hitter has reached the final three times – and lifted the trophy on every occasion. His first triumph came in 2021 with ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle during his breakthrough season. One year later, he repeated the feat with the Polish side and was named MVP of the SuperFinals. After joining Perugia, Semeniuk once again celebrated European glory when the Italian club captured its maiden title last season.
Kamil Semeniuk"The recipe for winning the Champions League is simple — you have to play better than the others! Of course, we will do our best to defend the title, but it will not be easy. The key is to play our best Volleyball. There is not much more to add because if we perform at our highest level, we know we can beat any team here. There will definitely be some nerves, as always during final events, so I think the team that starts better will have an advantage. I think - and I believe - that team will be us."
player of Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia
For his teammate Massimo Colaci, for whom the Final Four in Torino will be the last dance following the announcement of his retirement, the road back to the top was much longer. The experienced Italian libero first won the Champions League with Trentino in 2011 and then waited 14 years to celebrate European glory again with Perugia. Simone Giannelli, a true legend of Italian Volleyball and one of the world's finest playmakers, finally captured his long-awaited first #CLVolleyM trophy last year after suffering defeats in the 2016 and 2021 finals with Trentino. The 2025 triumph also carried special meaning for head coach Angelo Lorenzetti, who finally lifted the trophy after losing finals in 2003, 2008, 2021 and 2022. By guiding Perugia to last year’s gold medal match, Lorenzetti became only the third coach in history to reach five #CLVolleyM finals. Now he has a chance to defend the crown and become just the second head coach ever to make six final appearances.
Perugia’s semifinal opponents, PGE Projekt Warszawa, have reached their first-ever Final Four. While that achievement alone already marks a historic milestone for the club, the Polish side arrives in Torino aiming for even more – especially with some players who already know what it takes to conquer Europe.
Jakub Kochanowski was one of the leaders of ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle during the club’s historic maiden triumph in the 2020/21 season, and the decorated Polish middle blocker now has a chance to repeat that success. Michał Kozłowski also celebrated Champions League glory with ZAKSA in 2022, while Bartosz Bednorz – one of Warszawa’s key figures during this campaign despite currently being sidelined through injury – lifted the trophy with ZAKSA in 2023, fittingly in Torino itself.
Jakub Kochanowski"I have really good memories from this venue — with the Poland's national team we won the world championship title here. Now I am back in a slightly different role and for a different event, but all the memories and emotions are still extremely positive. We have the four best club teams in Europe competing in this Final Four, so everyone will fight tooth and nail until the very last ball. No one will give up and nobody will celebrate too early."
player of PGE Projekt Warszawa
Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie arrives in Torino not only as runners-up from last season’s edition, but also as newly crowned Polish champions after securing the club’s historic first domestic title. Although none of their current players has yet won the Champions League, head coach Michał Winiarski knows exactly what it takes to stand on top of Europe. The former Polish star lifted the #CLVolleyM trophy with Trentino in 2009 and still considers it one of the greatest achievements of his career alongside Poland’s world championship triumph in 2014.
Several of his players are also chasing long-awaited European glory. Jurii Gladyr has reached the final in each of the last three seasons – twice with Jastrzębski Węgiel and last year with Zawiercie – and at the age of 41 hopes to finally add the elusive trophy to his impressive career résumé. Zawiercie’s libero Jakub Popiwczak knows that heartbreak all too well. Like Gladyr, he lost two finals with Jastrzębski Węgiel before finishing third with the same club last season.
Jurii Gladyr"Winning the Champions League would mean a lot - it would be a great achievement, a great honour and a great joy. I think every team here has its chances. No one came to Torino just to play - everyone came here to fight for the trophy. Over the last few weeks we showed what we are capable of by winning the national title, but now this is a new competition, with different opponents, new circumstances and a blank page to write a new story. Everything starts from the beginning again."
player of Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie
Ziraat Bankkart Ankara heads to Torino with the chance to reach the #CLVolleyM final for the first time in club history after completing a domestic triple crown this season. Their roster also includes several players who came painfully close to European glory, only to leave the stage with silver medals.
Team leader Nimir Abdel-Aziz played in two Champions League finals – with Cuneo in 2013 and Trentino in 2021. Although he fell short on both occasions, the Dutch opposite has already conquered Asia twice, winning the AVC Champions League with Peykan Tehran in 2021/22 and with Al Rayyan in 2024/25, where he was also named MVP and Best Opposite. Now he hopes to repeat that success onto the European stage.
His teammates Trevor Clevenot and Tomasz Fornal also know the pain of finishing just short of the title. Both were part of the Jastrzębski Węgiel squad that claimed silver in 2023, while Fornal added another runners-up finish in 2024 before securing bronze last season.
Nimir Abdel-Aziz"The Champions League for club team it's the biggest trophy. It's the biggest goal to achieve, so it's really nice to be here. It's also a privilege to be here, because not every player can say that they are in the Final Four, and not every player can say that they played the final. Of course - my dream is to win it, but the fact to be here, to be able to try again it's really great."
team captain of Ziraat Bankkart Ankara
Who will lift the #CLVolleyM trophy this year and fulfill the ultimate dream in club volleyball will be decided on Sunday. Before that, Saturday’s semifinals will determine which two teams remain within touching distance of European glory.