The Yellow Tigers are preparing for an important summer in 2026. In the coming months, the Volleyball Nations League and the European Championship will bring two major appointments at the highest international level. The preparation is already becoming tangible, as the announcement of the long list officially marks the start of the summer.
Before the international campaign really gets underway, Belgian fans will already have the chance to see the Yellow Tigers in action on home soil.

During the fan days in Beveren, Belgium will face Sweden on May 29 at 8 pm and on May 30 at 4.30 pm. It gives the team an early meeting with its home crowd before the focus fully shifts to the international summer.
The Volleyball Nations League will be the first major challenge. For Belgium, it will be a crucial competition, not only to test itself again against the world’s best, but also to collect valuable points for the world ranking with LA28 in mind. The Yellow Tigers will play their VNL campaign over three weeks, with stops in Nanjing, Ankara and Hong Kong.

In Nanjing, from June 3 to June 7, a first set of matches awaits against Poland, Czechia, Thailand and Serbia. The team will then travel to Ankara, where matches against Türkiye, Brazil, Germany and France are scheduled from June 17 to June 21. The third and final week of the VNL will be played in Hong Kong, from July 8 to July 12, with matches against the Dominican Republic, Canada, Italy and Ukraine.

After the VNL, the focus will shift to the European Championship, which is scheduled for the Yellow Tigers from August 21 to September 6. Belgium has been drawn in Pool C in Azerbaijan, where it will face the host nation, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the Netherlands. From the round of 16 onwards, the tournament moves to Istanbul, where the knockout phase will be played.

Head coach Kris Vansnick is already looking forward to the summer with great enthusiasm. “With the Yellow Tigers, we are really looking forward to the upcoming summer. From this long list, we will start on May 11 with 18 players. It will be an important and challenging period in which we bring everyone together again and continue building on the team that showed itself at last year’s World Championship. We want to test ourselves again against the absolute world top in international volleyball and confirm that we belong at that level. We are also very curious to see the progress our players have made with their clubs at home and abroad. We want to use those experiences to take further steps forward as a team. With the Volleyball Nations League and the European Championship on the schedule, it promises to be an intense but above all exciting summer. We are motivated to keep growing together and to show the best of ourselves once again.”

With the announcement of the long list, the tone is set for a summer full of top matches, international challenges and important moments for the Yellow Tigers.

Setters

Charlotte Krenicky
Elise van Sas
Lara Nagels
Jutta Van de Vyver

Opposites

Pauline Martin
Liese Verhelst

Middle Blockers

Nathalie Lemmens
Silke Van Avermaet
Anna Koulberg
Britt Fransen
Yana Wouters
Sarah Hauben

Outside Hitters

Britt Herbots
Tea Radovic
Nel Demeyer
Eline Van Elsen
Helena Gilson
Saar Bertels
Flore Maes
Pauline Luyten
Janne Deleu

Libero's

Britt Rampelberg
Noor Debouck





RISING TEAM:


Setters

Annelore Engels
Lea Josevski
Romane Neufkens
Julie Maes
Auke Vanassche

Opposites

Mila Vlahovic
Ayiana Hall

Middle Blockers

Jasmijn Vanhoecke
Ana Van Den Spiegel
Harriet Jarju
Yana Wouters
Sarah Hauben

Outside Hitters

Ella Joosen
Lune Hoste
Clara Naticchi
Saar Bertels
Flore Maes
Pauline Luyten
Janne Deleu

Libero's

Jasmine Debout
Emma Vanderschommen