Lodz and Cannes will be hosting this year's finals

2009/2010 CEV Indesit Champions League

Luxembourg, January 21, 2010. Upon a careful analysis of the applications submitted over the past weeks, the European Volleyball Confederation is pleased to announce that the organization of the CICL Finals is allotted to the clubs of RC CANNES (Women) and PGE Skra BELCHATOW (Men). The very last stage of this prestigious competition will be back to the French Riviera after a 4-year long break, whereas the Polish club will host the men’s finals in Lodz, and namely in the brand-new and first-class facilities of the Atlas Arena.
With the organizers being directly qualified for the finals, the Drawing of Lots for the Playoffs 12 featured also the best third-ranked team of the prelims in the men’s division – i.e. Olympiacos PIRAEUS of Greece – and Metal GALATI from Romania that made it to the Playoffs via the “repechage” of the best fourth-ranked team.
Mrs. Riet Ooms was very happy to welcome to Luxembourg the representatives of a few teams, namely Zenit KAZAN, Knack Randstad ROESELARE and Dinamo MOSCOW who had decided to join the CEV family in the Grand Duchy for the Drawing of Lots.
The real highlight of the Playoffs 12 is expected to be – at least starting from the results of the prelims – the match-up starring Dinamo MOSCOW and Panathinaikos ATHENS, whereas Hypo Tirol INNSBRUCK that made it for the first time ever to the Playoffs will have a short trip to Friedrichshafen to face the team that totally dominated the operations in preliminary Pool E.
The Playoffs 12 star some “hot” matches also for the ladies with a Russian derby featuring Dinamo MOSCOW vs. Zarechie ODINTSOVO and the defending champions of Volley BERGAMO testing out the likes of ambitious Bank BPS Fakro MUSZYNIANKA of Poland. The Draw for the final four is also set, with the possibility – as per the Official Regulations - to revise it in order to have teams coming from the same country clashing in the semifinals and not in the final match.
Detailed results of the Drawing of Lots are included in the attached PDF file.
Earlier this morning, the Drawing of Lots for the Challenge Round of the 2009/2010 Men’s CEV Cup was also carried out under the supervision of the ECC President Mrs. Riet Ooms. The detailed Draw, including a provisional calendar, is attached at the bottom of this news; according to the general principles governing the European Cups, i.e. with the purpose to accord some kind of advantage to the teams climbing up to the continental elite via the CEV Cup, such clubs will be playing the return match on home soil. Moreover, in case two teams coming from the same country qualify for the Final Four, they will take on each other in one of the semifinal matches in order to avoid that a single nation is represented in the final game.

Draw Challenge Round CEV Cup - Men

Draw - Playoffs 12 CEV Indesit Champions League