Turkey beats Serbia 3-0 to reach European Volleyball Championship final

Turkey's women's volleyball team defeated Serbia 3-0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-20) in the semi-finals of the 2026 CEV European Championship at Sinan Erdem Spor Salonu in Istanbul. The match lasted 86 minutes and secured Turkey's fourth final appearance in tournament history.

Melissa Vargas led the scoring with 18 points while captain Eda Erdem Dündar and setter Elif Şahin contributed key plays across all three sets. Serbia's coach Zoran Terzić received a yellow card for protesting a challenge decision in the second set.

“Winning another final, bringing another cup to our museum is something I definitely want very much.”

Sports Minister Osman Aşkın Bak watched the match from courtside alongside Turkish Volleyball Federation President Mehmet Akif Üstündağ. Turkey advanced after beating Germany 3-1 in the quarter-finals and Azerbaijan 3-0 in the round of 16.

Italy earned the other final spot by defeating Poland 3-1 (25-19, 25-19, 21-25, 25-16) in the earlier semi-final. The gold medal match is scheduled for 6 September at 19:00 at the same venue.

Head coach Daniele Santarelli praised his team's tactical execution and said Italy are favourites due to their experience at this stage. He added that winning another title for the federation's trophy cabinet remains the goal.