Latvia W vs Hungary W

The fourth set was the incontestable pivot. Hungary had all the momentum after winning sets two and three, but Latvia refused to fold despite facing a 20–21 deficit late in the set. The 33–31 marathon — the longest set of the match at 45 minutes — drained Hungary's energy and handed Latvia the psychological edge heading into the fifth. From 5–1 up in the tie-break, Latvia never looked back.

Marta Kamēlija Levinska (Latvia) — 30 points (30 kills from 85 attacks, 1 ace, 2 blocks). The 22-year-old opposite carried Latvia's offence throughout, posting a 35% attack efficiency while taking nearly half of her team's swings. She was the undisputed Player of the Match.

Anett Németh (Hungary) — 34 points (30 kills from 74 attacks, 1 ace, 3 blocks at 41% efficiency). Németh matched Levinska point-for-point and was the main reason Hungary led 2–1. She produced the highest individual scoring total of the match.

Paula Ņečiporuka (Latvia) — 18 kills and 2 aces, providing crucial secondary scoring when Hungary's block focused on Levinska.

Karmena Struka (Latvia) — 5 blocks and 1 ace, anchoring Latvia's net defence in the decisive fourth and fifth sets.

Brigitta Petrenkó (Hungary) — 8 points and steady serving pressure in a supporting role.

The final points tally (Latvia 112–116 Hungary) tells a story that the set score does not: Hungary actually outscored Latvia across the full match by four points, yet lost the match. This reflects the extreme fourth set, where Latvia won 33–31 — a seven-point surplus that accounted for the entire margin. Latvia's attack efficiency (36%) was marginally better than Hungary's (33%), but the decisive gap came at the net, where Latvia registered 11 blocks to Hungary's 11 — level — while committing fewer attack errors (15 to Hungary's 17) across the five sets. Latvia also landed 7 aces to Hungary's 8, making serving roughly even.

Latvia secured their first win of EuroVolley 2026 after four consecutive losses, finishing Pool A in 5th place with 2 points from one win and four losses. Hungary ended their campaign winless in four matches (0–4), rooted to the bottom of the pool. Both teams were already eliminated from knockout-stage contention before this fixture.

For Latvia, returning to the European Championship for the first time since 1997, the victory provides a meaningful capstone to a tournament where they earned admiration — pushing Poland to four sets, taking a set off Germany, and finally breaking through against Hungary. Hungary, the youngest team in the tournament with an average age of 21 years and 41 days, leave with experience but no points on the board.

Poland topped Pool A with a perfect 4–0 record, followed by Turkey (4–0), Germany (2–3), and Slovenia (2–2) as the four qualified teams. Poland will face an opponent from the knockout draw next.

A match between two eliminated teams that played with the intensity of a knockout fixture. Levinska and Németh delivered individual performances worthy of a bigger stage, and the 33–31 fourth set will be one of the sets of the group phase. Latvia depart EuroVolley having earned their moment; Hungary depart knowing they competed in every match despite the scorelines.