Funchal 2026: Netherlands roar back against Spain to secure ticket to semi-finals
The Netherlands were involved in a second successive thriller in Madeira, battling back from 1-5 down to draw with Spain – a result that was enough to send them through to the semi-finals, despite losing the ensuing shootout. Earlier, world champions Greece maintained their 100% record in Funchal with an emphatic victory over Croatia. Italy and Hungary also overpowered their respective opponents – France and Israel – to march into the last four. Netherlands will face Italy in Tuesday’s semi-finals, while Greece take on Hungary. In the fight for classification places, Great Britain topped Group H after proving too strong for the hosts, Portugal, while Germany beat Serbia on penalties, but still fell short of overtaking them at the top of Group G.
Women’s 2026 European Water Polo Championships – Funchal
Day 7, Sunday 1 February
Group E
(1st-8th classification)
Italy 24-5 France
Greece 23-6 Croatia
Final standings: 1. Greece, 9pts, 2. Italy, 6pts, 3. Croatia, 3pts, 4. France, 0pts
Group F
(1st-8th classification)
Hungary 22-6 Israel
Netherlands 13-13 (0-3P) Spain
Final standings: 1. Netherlands, 7pts, 2. Hungary, 6pts, 3. Spain, 5pts, 4. Israel, 0pts
Group G
(9th-16th classification)
Slovakia 9-13 Türkiye
Germany 9-9 (4-3P) Serbia
Final standings: 1. Serbia, 7pts, 2. Germany, 6pts, 3. Türkiye, 5pts, 4. Slovakia, 0pts
Group H
(9th-16th classification)
Romania 12-14 Switzerland
Portugal 8-15 Great Britain
Final standings: 1. Great Britain, 9pts, 2. Portugal, 6pts, 3. Switzerland, 3pts, 4. Romania, 0pts
Group E
(1st-8th classification)
Italy 24-5 France
(8-1, 3-1, 5-0, 8-3)
Italy were the overwhelming favourites for this clash, and they played the part, racing into an 8-1 lead in the opening quarter and moving completely out of sight at 11-2 by half-time.
With their last meeting against France ending in a shock 9-8 defeat in the group stage of the Paris Olympics, this marked Italy’s first opportunity since then to exact some revenge – and they seized it emphatically.
Italy’s forwards overpowered their markers all over the pool, with Chiara Ranalli leading the way, scoring three times in the first two quarters.
The Italians maintained their dominance in the third, stretching the margin to 16-2, and the statistics underlined the imbalance – France goalkeeper Eszter Lefebvre had managed to stop just one of the 17 shots she had faced at that point (finishing on 1/25, and Italy’s Aurora Condorelli was 8/10).
By the final buzzer, Italy were resounding 24-5 winners. Ranalli completed a game-high five goals, while Lavinia Papi, Dafne Bettini and Chiara Tabani followed with three apiece.
The victory was the perfect response to Saturday’s defeat by Greece and secured Italy’s place in the semi-finals, where they will face the reigning champions Netherlands on Tuesday.
Group E
(1st-8th classification)
Greece 23-6 Croatia
(5-0, 6-2, 6-0, 6-4)
Greece produced dominant displays against Croatia at the past four editions of the European Championships, and they added another on Sunday in Funchal.
With this game their last chance to fine-tune preparations ahead of Tuesday’s crunch semi-finals, the World and World Cup champions powered their way to a 5-0 lead inside the first eight minutes, with the last three of those goals coming from the prolific Vasiliki Plevritou.
Greece added six more in the second quarter, as the Croatian defence were left chasing shadows.
In attack, the Croats did find some success, with Iva Rozic scoring twice past Ioanna Stamatopoulou, who was in fine form between the posts, registering figures of 9/11 in the first half.
Maria Patra opened the scoring early in the third quarter, finishing off a swift counter-attack that brought up Greece’s 100th goal in Funchal, before Vasiliki Plevritou netted her fifth of the game – from a six-on-five – and her 20th of the tournament.
Her sixth (and 21st) soon followed, as Greece continued to surge forward at every opportunity, with Vasiliki arriving unmarked at the near post for a straightforward finish.
By the end of the third quarter, Greece were 17-2 clear and could begin to turn their attention to the last four, without too much concern over only edging the final eight minutes 6-4 against Croatia.
Group F
(1st-8th classification)
Hungary 22-6 Israel
(5-4, 5-1, 7-1, 5-0)
The opening eight minutes unfolded as expected, with the Hungarians building a lead against Israel, but it wasn’t as big as some may have thought (5-4).
After their exertions against the title-holders Netherlands on Saturday, it was perhaps understandable the Magyars didn’t start this game with the high-intensity levels their coach Sandor Cseh has been demanding in Funchal.
Captain Rita Keszthelyi was trying to fire up her team as much as possible and led by example, scoring Hungary’s first two goals either side of Noa Sasova’s 6m equaliser.
When Natasa Rybanska made it 3-1 from their second six-on-five, they looked to be on their way, but Noga Levinshtein, then Miya Tirosh, levelled the scores for Israel.
Tekla Aubeli overpowered her marker in the centre for 4-3, before Keszthelyi completed her hat-trick for 5-3.
Israel’s Maria Bogachenko struck from an extra just before the first break, then Alma Yaacobi fired in from their first six-on-five in the second period to tie the scores once again.
From there, it was pretty much business as usual, with Hungary embarking on a powerful 5-0 surge before half-time (10-5).
Early in the third, Rybanska added two more – one from extra, and a 6m blast – as the Hungarians started to show their real face in defence and attack.
Dorottya Szilagyi and Nora Sumegi hit another two, before Tirosh struck to end the Magyars’ 9-0 rush and Israel’s 12:04 drought.
Hungary were home and dry at 16-6, and in the fourth they were given the chance to fine-tune their six-on-five play, as Tahel Levi had been excluded for four minutes for a violent action 25 seconds before the last break.
Against the Netherlands on Saturday, Hungary were 1/10 on extra, and they finished 7/14 against the Israelis.
In the end, the Magyars got the win they needed to reach the last four, but they’ll need to improve further if they are to challenge for the title.
Group F
(1st-8th classification)
Netherlands 13-13 (0-3P) Spain
(1-2, 3-3, 5-3, 4-5, 0-3P)
Sunday’s final game in Funchal was a repeat of the 2024 European Championships final between the Netherlands and Spain.
With Spain starting the clash three points behind the Dutch and Hungary in the table – and with an inferior goal difference – they needed to win by at least two clear goals to advance to the semi-finals.
The Olympic champions’ task immediately got tougher, as Dutch captain Maartje Keuning found space around the back of the Spanish defence and fired past a visibly frustrated Martina Terre.
Spain were soon level, though, as their top scorer in Madeira, Queralt Anton, broke down the right and rifled in, before Bea Ortiz finished off a second six-on-five with a powerful shot that flashed into the top-left corner for 1-2.
At the start of the second quarter, Ortiz put Spain two ahead from a penalty – and, more importantly, into the semi-final places in the table.
The Spanish captain appeared to be on a mission, and within a minute she struck again, unleashing a fierce shot that Laura Aarts was powerless to keep out.
When Ortiz scored once more for 1-5, after swimming through unmarked for an easy finish, Dutch coach Eva Doudesis had seen enough and called a time-out.
His wise words had an immediate effect, with Kitty Lynn Joustra finding space to turn and finish in the centre for 2-5.
The momentum had suddenly swung, and when Leike Rogge hammered in from the left wing, the Dutch closed to within two.
Bente Rogge then slammed a shot against the post on extra, before Joustra made it 4-5 from another Netherlands six-on-five, with her effort just beating the buzzer before half-time.
In the third quarter, Joustra struck once more from the centre to level the scores at 5-5.
With 4:32 on the clock, Bente Rogge – the match-winner in Eindhoven – had a golden opportunity to put the Dutch ahead from 2m, but her shot sailed high over the bar.
Doudesis banged the advertising boards in frustration, earning himself a yellow card, before Carlota Penalver ended the Dutch 4-0 run by scoring to edge Spain back in front.
A Lola Moolhuijzen penalty restored parity, and she then added another from the right wing to make it 7-6.
The tension was evident, with every goal being celebrated like a winner, including Paula Crespi’s equaliser for 7-7.
Joustra continued to cause problems for the Spanish defence on 2m, slamming in her fourth goal of the game.
Ortiz then rediscovered the composure she had shown earlier, arrowing a precise shot from the perimeter into the top-left corner for 8-8.
She was less composed at the other end, though, conceding her second major foul, which allowed her opposite number, Keuning, to edge the Dutch back in front.
At 9-8 heading into the final quarter, Spain were back where they had started in the first minute – needing three unanswered goals to claim a place in the top two in the group.
Ortiz smashed in their first six-on-five of the quarter from the perimeter to reignite hope, before Elena Ruiz followed suit to make it 9-10.
A VAR review then went the way of the Dutch, with Simone Van De Kraats’ shot adjudged to have crossed the line, despite the best efforts of Martina Terre to keep it out.
An Elena Ruiz penalty goal heightened the drama with 5:09 left on the clock. Ruiz had clearly found her range, as she soon fired another rocket from 5m into the top corner for 10-12.
The action continued at pace, with Joustra once again stepping up for the Netherlands on their next six-on-five, pushing the ball in from close range.
Van De Kraats levelled at 12-12, before Leike Rogge scored on their next extra for 13-12, prompting Jordi Valls to call a time-out with 2:03 remaining.
With the Dutch winning the ball back and running down the clock, Valls had no choice but to call another time-out when they regained possession and went for broke with a seven-on-six.
It paid off, as Ortiz struck her seventh of the night to make it 13-13 after Paula Camus’ initial effort had been blocked.
With 1:05 to play, Spain still needed two more goals to progress, but their next seven-on-six shot was saved by Aarts, as was their second attempt, ending their race for the semi-finals – though a shootout still had to be completed.
Spain went on to win that 0-3, but it mattered little to the Dutch, who had already done enough to secure their place in the semi-finals.
Group G
(9th-16th classification)
Slovakia 9-13 Türkiye
(4-5, 3-2, 2-4, 0-2)
Türkiye and Slovakia met for the second time at a European Championships. Two years ago in Eindhoven, the Turks triumphed 13-10 in the 13th-16th semi-finals, and the opening quarter in Funchal suggested another close contest was on the cards.
Türkiye led 4-5 at the first break, with Elif Dilara Aydinlik responsible for keeping them ahead. She continued her fine penalty-saving form – having blocked three in the shootout against Germany on Friday – by getting a strong left hand to Lenka Garancovska’s effort with 30 seconds remaining in the opening period.
Slovakia were level by half-time at 7-7, as both teams were repeatedly pegged back and unable to establish a two-goal advantage.
With 3:27 remaining in the third quarter, Milana Molnar finally created some daylight for her team, burying a penalty to make it 8-10, and Türkiye still held a two-goal cushion (9-11) heading into the final eight minutes.
Barbora Baranovicova twice rattled the post early in the fourth as Slovakia desperately tried to close the gap, but a 6m blast from Molnar and a neat finish from Hamiyet Suzmecelik proved enough for the Turks to seal the win.
The margin could have been wider, had it not been for two penalty saves from Slovakia’s Ella Pechova, who denied Naz Ozdemir in the first quarter and Emma Gurcan late in the fourth.
Molnar inflicted most of the damage for the Turks, top scoring with five, while captain Dilara Burali hit two.
Group G
(9th-16th classification)
Germany 9-9 (4-3P) Serbia
(3-4, 4-4, 1-0, 1-1)
Two powerful backhand finishes – first from Masa Cuk, then Elena Cuk – edged Serbia into a narrow 3-4 lead at the end of a fiercely contested opening quarter.
Elena Ludwig hauled Germany level early in the second with a thunderous effort from the perimeter, before Georgia Sopiadou converted a crisp six-on-five move to nudge the Germans in front.
Jelena Vukovic quickly equalised, unleashing a superb 6m shot that skipped off the surface and flashed into the top-right corner.
Masa Cuk attempted another backhander soon after, but this time Darja Heinbichner read it well and knocked the ball away for a corner.
Switching tactics, Cuk floated a perfectly weighted lob over Heinbichner next to make it 5-6.
Jovana Radonjic – Serbia’s leading scorer in Funchal with 10 goals coming into this contest – then drilled a low effort into the left corner to stretch their advantage to two with 1:03 left in the half.
There was still time for three more goals before the break, as Germany’s Gese Deike struck twice, either side of Ana Milicevic’s classy finish, to leave the score finely poised at 7-8 at the long break.
The third quarter started with six minutes of end-to-end battling and no goals. Sopiadou came closest to breaking the deadlock, only to see her 6m attempt crash against the far post.
With 1:28 remaining, Gese Deike finally broke the drought, converting Germany’s third six-on-five of the period to level the contest at 8-8 and set up a tense final quarter.
Midway through the fourth, Sinia Plotz fired Germany back in front, her fierce long-range effort clipping the underside of the crossbar before bouncing just over the line for 9-8.
Serbia responded with a late surge in search of an equaliser, and it arrived when Radonjic powered in from the left wing on extra to make it 9-9 with 1:01 on the clock.
This goal meant Serbia were heading towards first place in the group – as Germany needed a regular time victory to overtake them at the top of the table.
With this in mind, German coach Karsten Seehafer called a time-out at the start of their last possession, but despite what was at stake, his side failed to take a shot, sending the match to a shootout.
After falling to Türkiye on penalties on Friday, this time the Germans were celebrating, as Barbara Bujka blasted in their fifth attempt to seal a 4-3 shootout victory, after Heinbichner denied Hristina Ilic in the second round and Vukovic’s effort slammed against the post in the fourth.
Despite the defeat, a point was enough for Serbia to secure top spot in the group and a place in the 9th/10th classification final, where they will face Great Britain.
Group H
(9th-16th classification)
Romania 12-14 Switzerland
(3-3, 3-1, 3-5, 3-5)
Romania and Switzerland were both searching for their first win in Funchal, and it was the Swiss who got it, battling back from 9-7 down in the third quarter to condemn the Romanians to the 15th/16th classification final.
At 2-1 in the opening period, Romania had the perfect chance to move two clear, but Krisztina-Emese Szeghalmi’s penalty crashed against the left-hand post.
Switzerland punished that miss immediately, with Lotti Verhagen rifling in a six-on-five goal from distance to level the scores.
Moments later, Szeghalmi redeemed herself, edging the Romanians back in front on extra, but a penalty from Verhagen tied the scores at the first break (3-3).
The drama continued, as early in the second quarter, Verhagen completed her hat-trick, firing in from the perimeter to nudge the Swiss ahead.
However, Szeghalmi – still entrusted with penalty duties – buried her next chance from the 5m line, and Briana–Maria Mihaila’s six-on-five finish swung the momentum back in Romania’s favour.
After a time-out, Debora-Julia Nagy added another from extra – extending their run to 3-0 – and putting Romania two clear at half-time (6-4).
In the third, Switzerland trailed 9-7, but their counter-attack was really starting to hurt the Romanians, and by the end of the period the teams were level at 9-9.
The momentum remained with the Swiss in the fourth, as three unanswered goals put them 9-12 ahead and suddenly they were closing in on their first victory on this stage since beating the Czech Republic 7-5 in Leeds in 1993 (Switzerland lost all of their matches when they last featured in 1995).
Romania hit back to reduce the deficit to one (12-13) with 54 seconds left, but they couldn’t find an equaliser, and Amy Nussbaumer struck with 0:10 on the clock to officially end Switzerland’s long, long wait for a win.
Group H
(9th-16th classification)
Portugal 8-15 Great Britain
(0-3, 4-3, 1-5, 3-4)
Great Britain came flying out of the blocks against the hosts, with Katy Cutler and captain Kathy Rogers both firing in to give the favourites an early 0-2 lead.
Portugal created a handful of chances, but British goalkeeper Cassidy Ball was equal to everything they threw at her, saving three from three and also producing two excellent steals.
In the final minute of the first quarter, Lily Turner made things worse for the hosts by hammering in a penalty to make it 0-3.
Portugal got on the scoresheet early in the second quarter through Joana Arromba, before Great Britain’s Brooke Tafazolli was allowed to drift in from the perimeter on extra for an easy shot into the corner.
Maria Machado then converted from the 5m line, and Ines Nunes overpowered her marker in the centre to bring the hosts back within one.
Just 20 seconds later, Portugal were level, as Arromba’s steal led to Madalena Lousa swimming through clear to make it 4-4.
That sparked a response from Great Britain, with Izzy Howe scoring from the right wing and Harriet Dickens converting a penalty to restore their lead at half-time (4-6).
Machado’s penalty at the start of the third kept Portugal believing, but Rogers replied instantly at the other end to re-establish the Brits’ two-goal cushion.
The advantage soon stretched to three after a VAR review went Great Britain’s way, with play pulled back to confirm that Dickens’ effort from the left wing had crossed the line.
Alice Rodrigues had a chance to reduce the deficit on the counter, but with only the goalkeeper to beat, her shot struck the underside of the crossbar.
Lucy Blenkinship rose well on 2m to slam in a ninth goal for Great Britain, Turner added another penalty, and when Toula Falvey flicked the ball in from the centre for 5-11, the contest was effectively decided.
In the fourth, after Falvey struck again, Portugal finally ended their 10-minute scoring drought through Beatriz Pereira, who finished off a counter from the left wing.
Great Britain remained in control for the closing minutes, with Turner, Dickens and Falvey all completing their hat-tricks as they earned the right to face Serbia in Monday’s 9th/10th final.
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Andy Rollé for European Aquatics
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