2026 Men's European Water Polo Championship Explained

Tourney Name:	2026 Men's European Water Polo Championship
Country:	Serbia
Num Teams:	16
Confederations:	1
Venues:	1
Cities:	1
Previous:	2024 Men's European Water Polo Championship
Next:	2028 Men's European Water Polo Championship

The 2026 Men's European Water Polo Championship will be the 37th running of the tournament. It will be held in Belgrade, Serbia.^[1]

Host selection

Belgrade was given the hosting rights on 13 May 2022.^[2]

Qualification

Sixteen teams will be able to compete at the main event. They are broken up as follows:

• The host nation
• The top seven or eight teams from the 2024 European Championship not already qualified as host nation
• Final seven or eight from the qualifiers.

!Event!Date!Location!Quotas!Nation(s)

Host	13 May 2022	–	1
2024 European Championship	29 August – 10 September	Dubrovnik, Split	7
Qualifiers	2025	Various	8

Venue

Similar to 2016, the Štark Arena will be used for the entire competition.^[3]

		Belgrade
		Štark Arena
		Capacity: 18,386

Notes and References

1. Web site: Tel Aviv, Belgrade To Host Next Two European Water Polo Championships. 13 May 2022. swimswam.com.
2. Web site: Tel Aviv, Belgrade To Host Next Two European Water Polo Championships. 13 May 2022. swimswam.com.
3. https://www.rts.rs/sport/vaterpolo/4812827/beograd-domacin-evropskog-prvenstva-u-vaterpolu-2026-godine.html