Beach Nations Cup Finals
The 2025 CEV Beach Volley Nations Cup Finals in Espinho this week will feature top women`s teams from eight European countries, including continental powerhouses.
The Finals of the Beach Nations Cup, an exciting `country vs country` format similar to tennis` Davis Cup, will take place on the popular Praia da Baía. This competition was added to the European beach volleyball calendar in 2022. Joining hosts Portugal from Thursday to Sunday are seven other nations who qualified by winning their Preliminary Phase pools: Estonia, France, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Spain, and Ukraine.
The eight qualified countries will be divided into two pools of four. The top three from each pool will advance to the knockout stage; pool winners go straight to the semifinals, while second and third-placed teams compete in quarterfinals.
Reigning European champions Svenja Müller and Cinja Tillmann are set to compete, leading a field that includes a remarkable 11 Olympians.
Müller and Tillmann, bronze medalists at the 2022 World Championship and Paris Olympians for Germany, headline a formidable German team that also includes experienced blocker Sandra Ittlinger and promising defender Anna-Lena Grüne.
The French contingent features four Olympians, comprising the two pairs who represented the nation at the Paris Games: Lézana Placette/Alexia Richard and Clémence Vieira/Aline Chamereau.
Spain`s top duo, Daniela Álvarez and Tania Moreno, silver medalists at EuroBeachVolley 2023 and Paris Olympians, will team up with Sofía González and Ana Vergara for the Finals.
Similarly, the Lithuanian team includes Paris Olympians Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte, joined by Ariana Rudkoviskaja and Skalve Krizanauskaite.
Defending champions, the Netherlands, bring the 11th Olympian to the competition, defender Raisa Schoon, who participated in both the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Games. She pairs with Mila Konink. The Dutch team also includes Emi van Driel and Wies Bekhuis, members of the 2024 winning squad.
Hosts Portugal will rely on the pairs Gabriela Coelho/Mariana Maia and Vanessa Paquete/Beatriz Lacerda to perform strongly for their home crowd.
Ukraine, emerging as a continental force, is represented by two pairs who have shown strong international results this season: Anhelina Khmil/Valentyna Davidova and Maryna Hladun/Tetiana Lazarenko.
Rounding out the list of contenders in Espinho is Estonia, who surprisingly qualified over Poland in the Preliminary Phase. Their teams for the Finals are Heleene Hollas/Keira Lukas and Eva Kuivonen/Liisa-Lotta Jürgenson.
The women`s pool play runs from Thursday to Friday, with quarterfinals also scheduled for Friday. Semifinals are set for Saturday, followed by the gold medal match on Sunday.
Jasper Thornfield 
Finley Blackwood