Mladost Zagreb join Fino Kaposvár and Orion Stars in 2026/27 Champions League Round 2

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Mladost Zagreb are through to the second qualifying round of the CEV XTB Champions League Volley 2027.
The Croatian side defeated Kuutio Homes Pafiakos Pafos 3-1 (21:25, 25:22, 25:17, 25:19) in front of their home supporters at the Bojan Stranić Volleyball Hall, completing a second consecutive victory over the Cypriot team by the same scoreline. Having also won 3-1 in the first leg in Pafos, Mladost advanced comfortably on aggregate and will now face Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia in the next stage, starting next week.

The hosts had to overcome a difficult opening, with Pafiakos taking the first set 25-21 after a closely contested finish. Mladost had briefly moved ahead 18-16 and still led 20-19, but the visitors produced four consecutive points to take the lead in the match. The Croatian team responded in the second set, improving its serving and reception. Even after Pafiakos fought back to level the score at 19-19, Mladost held its nerve to close out the set 25-22.
From that point onwards, the balance of the match shifted decisively. Mladost raised its level in both attack and defence, building a commanding 16-6 lead in the third set before securing it 25-17. The home side maintained control in the fourth, never allowing Pafiakos to move ahead and eventually sealing the match 25-19.
The statistics reflected Mladost’s superiority: 56-48 in attack points, 12-7 in blocks and 6-3 in aces, while the Croatian team also enjoyed better reception figures, with 64% compared to the visitors’ 53%. Jan Pokeršnik led Mladost with 21 points, while Ivan Zeljković contributed 17 and was named MVP. For Pafiakos, Nikolaos Eleftheriou finished with 15 points.

“First of all, I would like to take my hat off to our captain, Tsimafei Zhukouski, who managed to play through an injury. He did the same in Cyprus and again today. We started the match very nervously and made too many mistakes. We were not ourselves, either in attack or on serve. As the match progressed, we gradually found our rhythm. We improved our serving, which then made it easier to defend. We are happy, but there is no time to rest. This weekend, we have a Croatian Superliga match in Varaždin, and next week we continue our Champions League qualifying campaign against Levski SOFIA. I hope everyone will be healthy by then and that we will have even greater support from our fans at the Volleyball Hall against the Bulgarian side,” said MVP Zeljković.

Borja Ruiz, the Cypriot team’s middle blocker, acknowledged the quality of the opposition after the elimination: “Home-court advantage played its part. Mladost were the better team, showed more quality and deserved to win. We missed our opportunity in the first match in Pafos. This was a valuable experience for us.”

Wednesday had already produced two more teams advancing to Round 2, although their routes to qualification were rather different.
In North Macedonia, Orion Stars Doetinchem survived a demanding away encounter against UGD Stip, winning 2-3 (25:23, 20:25, 25:21, 10:25, 10:15). The Dutch side had dominated the first leg 3-0 at home, but found itself under pressure after Stip claimed the opening and third sets. Orion responded emphatically in the fourth, crushing the hosts 25-10 before completing the comeback in the tie-break. The Dutch team will now face Slovenia’s ACH Volley Ljubljana, with the first match scheduled for November 4 in Doetinchem.

Fino Kaposvár also booked its place in the next round, defeating Bosnia and Herzegovina’s OK Napredak Odžak 1-3 (17:25, 20:25, 25:21, 17:25) away from home. The Hungarian champions had won the first leg 3-2 and therefore completed the tie with victories in both matches. Jacob Steele was once again the outstanding performer, scoring 27 points and collecting the MVP award for the second consecutive match. Kaposvar’s next challenge will be against Austria’s TSV Raiffeisen Hartberg, with the first leg due to take place in Hungary.

The five teams already granted direct access to the second qualifying round were TSV Raiffeisen Hartberg, Levski Sofia, Khilasedichi Baku, Sporting CP Lisboa and ACH Volley Ljubljana. With Fino Kaposvár, Orion Stars and Mladost Zagreb now joining them, the next stage of the road to the Champions League league phase is beginning to take shape.

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🏆| 2026/27 CEV Champions League | First Round

FIRST LEG

Tuesday October 20, 2026
• 19.00 (Local Time) | Kuutio Homes Pafiakos Pafos (CYP) – Mladost Zagreb (CRO) 1-3 (21:25, 25:21, 21:25, 23:25)

Wednesday October 21, 2026
• 18.00 (Local Time) | Fino Kaposvar (HUN) – OK Napredak Odzak (BIH) 3-2 (25:17, 28:30, 23:25, 25:12, 15:13)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | Orion Stars Doetinchem (NED) – UGD Stip (MKD) 3-0 (25:13, 25:19, 25:17)

SECOND LEG

Wednesday October 28, 2026
• 18.00 (Local Time) | UGD Stip (MKD) – Orion Stars Doetinchem (NED) 2-3 (25:23, 20:25, 25:21, 10:25, 10:15)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | OK Napredak Odzak (BIH) – Fino Kaposvar (HUN) 1-3 (17:25, 20:25, 25:21, 17:25)

Thursday October 29, 2026
• 18.00 (Local Time) | Mladost Zagreb (CRO) – Kuutio Homes Pafiakos Pafos (CYP) 3-1 (21:25, 25:22, 25:17, 25:19)

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