2026 European Canoe Polo Club Championships preview: KSVH Berlin defend title in Milan
- Published
- 2026-10-01T14:50:45+00:00
- Author
- PaddleStats
Full competition results: Paddle Europe Canoe Polo Club Championships - Milan
The 2026 Paddle Europe Canoe Polo Club Championships start on Friday at Idroscalo in Segrate, on the eastern edge of Milan, with 25 men's and 15 women's club teams playing 168 matches over three days. KSVH Berlin arrive as defending men's champions, and both titles will be decided on Sunday afternoon on pitch 1: the women's final at 14:30, the men's at 15:15.
Follow the championships on PaddleStats: the full fixture list, results and group tables for both divisions are on the Milan 2026 club championships page.
Overview: 40 club teams, 168 matches, four pitches
This is Europe's club championship, not a national-team event. Clubs are entered by their national federations, which also approve the rosters. The tournament is hosted on behalf of Paddle Europe by the Italian Canoe Kayak Federation (FICK), the City of Milan and Idroscalo Club. All matches are played on four pitches laid out on the lake at Idroscalo Club, Circonvallazione Idroscalo 29.
| Division | Teams | Groups | Matches | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 25 | A, B, C (6 teams each), D (7 teams) | 108 (M1–M108) | Sun 4 Oct, 15:15, pitch 1 |
| Women | 15 | A, B, C (5 teams each) | 60 (F1–F60) | Sun 4 Oct, 14:30, pitch 1 |
Most of the action comes in the first two days. Friday has 52 matches between 12:00 and 18:30, Saturday 76, from 07:30 through to the men's quarter-finals at 18:30. Sunday has 40, starting at 07:30 and ending with the men's final. All times are local (Central European Summer Time).
Play begins on Friday at 12:00 with four matches at once: Branik v Corbeil-Essonnes (M1, pitch 1), KGV Essen v Poznań (M2, pitch 2), Zürich v Duisburg in women's Group A (F1, pitch 3) and Burriana v Praha in women's Group B (F2, pitch 4).
The championships come less than two weeks after the ICF Canoe Polo World Championships in Duisburg, where Italy won the men's title and Germany the women's. Milan is a different kind of competition: clubs instead of national teams, and three days of play instead of six.
Idroscalo: from seaplane airport to the "Sea of Milan"
Idroscalo was built between 1928 and 1930, next to what is now Linate Airport, as a seaplane airport meant to connect Milan with the world. Once seaplanes fell out of use, the basin became a place for sport and recreation, and today it is known as the "Sea of Milan". It regularly hosts international sporting events and concerts. Linate is just 3 km from the club, about a ten-minute drive.
The rules of the game
In canoe polo, each team has five players on the water and up to three substitutes, and the goals hang two metres above the water. A standard outdoor pitch measures 35 by 23 metres. Under international rules, a match consists of two halves of up to ten minutes each. In Milan, a new round of four matches starts every 30 minutes on Friday and Saturday morning, and every 35 minutes from Saturday afternoon. The championships are played under Paddle Europe and ICF canoe polo rules.
Two short PaddleStats videos cover the basics: how a canoe polo match works and how the game became five-a-side.
KSVH Berlin defend the men's title
The 2025 European Club Championships were held in Kaniów, Poland, on 27–28 September, with 26 men's and 10 women's teams. KSVH Berlin won their last two matches by the same 2–1 score: the semi-final against Avranches and the final against FOA Liverpool. Avranches took bronze by beating Powiśle Warszawa 6–3.
Liverpool are not in this year's field, which leaves Berlin as the only 2025 finalist in Milan. Seven other men's teams from Kaniów are back, some of them entered under shorter names:
| 2025 place (Kaniów) | Club | 2026 entry | 2026 group |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | KSVH Berlin | KSVH Berlin | A |
| 3 | Avranches | Avranches | B |
| 4 | Powiśle Warszawa | Warszawa | D |
| 5 | Real Club Náutico Castellón | Castellón | D |
| 7 | Corbeil-Essonnes | Corbeil-Essonnes | A |
| 8 | Odysseus A | Odysseus | B |
| 11 | Clube Fluvial de Coimbra | Coimbra | A |
| 12 | Napoli | Napoli | D |
In Group A, Berlin face Deventer (Friday 12:30, pitch 3), Corbeil-Essonnes (14:00), Branik (15:30), Coimbra (Saturday 09:30) and Kilkenny (Saturday 12:00). Friday's match against Corbeil-Essonnes will be the first meeting in Milan between two of last year's top eight.
Avranches open Group B against Thurgauer at 13:00 on Friday. On Saturday at 08:30 on pitch 1 they play Odysseus, the second group match between two of the 2025 top eight. They finish the group stage against Dispersus at 12:30 on Saturday.
How the men's tournament works
Nobody goes home after the group stage. Every team plays until Sunday, and group position only decides which bracket a team plays in.
- Group winners go straight into the quarter-finals on Saturday at 18:30.
- Second and third places meet in a crossover round on Saturday at 15:10: A2 v C3, C2 v A3, B2 v D3 and D2 v B3. The winners join the four group winners in the quarter-finals; the losers play for places 9–12 on Sunday.
- Fourth and fifth places play quarter-finals for places 13–20 on Saturday at 16:55.
- Sixth places, plus the seventh team in Group D, play a five-team round robin for places 21–25.
On Sunday, the semi-finals are at 09:50 (M92 on pitch 1, M93 on pitch 2), the bronze match at 13:45 on pitch 2 and the final at 15:15. A group winner needs three wins over the last two days to take the title; a team finishing second or third in its group needs four.
Group D is the only seven-team group, so its teams play six group matches instead of five. It also includes three of the eight clubs in the table above: Warszawa (4th in 2025), Castellón (5th) and Napoli (12th), alongside Gent, Linköping, Ulster and Zürich. Group A has the same number: KSVH Berlin (1st), Corbeil-Essonnes (7th) and Coimbra (11th). Castellón v Warszawa on Saturday at 10:30 (M50, pitch 1) brings together two of last year's top five.
Group C has no team from the 2025 top twelve. It is made up of Praha, Skovshoved, KGV Essen, Málaga, Italian club Chiavari and Poznań, and its top three all reach the bracket for places 1–12.
The women's tournament: 15 teams, five more than in 2025
The women's championship has grown from 10 teams in Kaniów to 15 in Milan. The 2025 title went to 1. MKC Duisburg, who beat ACIGNÉ N1D 1–0 in the final, while Avranches took bronze with a 3–2 win over Keistad.
Five entries carry the names of clubs from the 2025 women's standings: Duisburg (1st in 2025), Avranches (3rd), Rovigo (5th), Neptun (7th) and Burriana (8th). Duisburg play in Group A with Pont-d'Ouilly, Neptun, Ichnusa and Zürich, and open against Zürich at noon on Friday. Group B is made up of Avranches, KRM Essen, Thurgauer, Burriana and Praha. Group C brings together Alaquas, Kingston, Rovigo, Deventer and Mullingar.
The women's format includes a second group round:
- The top two from each of groups A–C form a six-team pool for places 1–6 (labelled "Group D" on the timetable). On Saturday afternoon, each team plays two matches in it against opponents from the other groups.
- The top four of that pool play the semi-finals on Sunday at 09:15 (first v fourth, second v third). Fifth and sixth play each other twice for fifth place.
- Third and fourth places follow the same format for places 7–12, and the three fifth-placed teams play each other twice for places 13–15.
Each women's team therefore plays four group matches by Saturday midday and two second-round matches that afternoon. The bronze match (F59) is on Sunday at 13:45 on pitch 1, followed by the final (F60) at 14:30.
The hosts are represented by Ichnusa and Rovigo in the women's event and by Chiavari and Napoli in the men's.
What's next: Sunday's medal matches
The last group matches start at 13:00 on Saturday. The afternoon brings the men's crossovers and quarter-finals and the women's second group round. The key Sunday fixtures:
| Time | Pitch | Match |
|---|---|---|
| 09:15 | 1 and 2 | Women's semi-finals (F50: D1 v D4, F51: D2 v D3) |
| 09:50 | 1 and 2 | Men's semi-finals (M92, M93) |
| 13:45 | 1 | Women's bronze match (F59) |
| 13:45 | 2 | Men's bronze match (M107) |
| 14:30 | 1 | Women's final (F60) |
| 15:15 | 1 | Men's final (M108) |
The men's placing matches for 5th to 20th are spread across Sunday morning, between 08:05 and 12:10. The medal ceremony follows the finals.
Results, group tables and the full fixture list are on the Milan 2026 club championships page. For national-team results, see the 2024 ICF Canoe Polo World Championships and September's world championships in Duisburg.
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where are the 2026 Paddle Europe Canoe Polo Club Championships?
From Friday 2 to Sunday 4 October 2026 at Idroscalo Club, Circonvallazione Idroscalo 29, Segrate, on the edge of Milan, Italy. Play starts at 12:00 on Friday. Both finals are on Sunday on pitch 1: the women's at 14:30 and the men's at 15:15.
How many teams play at the European Club Championships in Milan?
40 club teams: 25 in the men's division (groups A–D) and 15 in the women's division (groups A–C). Together they play 168 matches, 108 men's and 60 women's, on four pitches.
Who won the 2025 European Canoe Polo Club Championships?
KSVH Berlin won the men's title in Kaniów, Poland, beating FOA Liverpool 2–1 in the final, with Avranches taking bronze. In the women's division, 1. MKC Duisburg beat ACIGNÉ N1D 1–0 in the final, and Avranches again won bronze.
Can KSVH Berlin defend the men's title?
They are the only 2025 finalist in Milan, as runners-up FOA Liverpool have not entered. Last year Berlin beat Avranches in the semi-final and Liverpool in the final, both by 2–1. Avranches and Powiśle Warszawa, third and fourth last year, are in the field again.
Is Group D the toughest men's group?
Not on paper. On 2025 placings, groups A and D are level, each with three of last year's top twelve: KSVH Berlin (1st), Corbeil-Essonnes (7th) and Coimbra (11th) in Group A; Warszawa (4th), Castellón (5th) and Napoli (12th) in Group D. Group D is, however, the only seven-team group, so its teams play six group matches instead of five before the knockout rounds.
Is anyone eliminated after the group stage?
No. Every team plays on until Sunday. Men's group winners go straight into the quarter-finals, second and third places play a crossover round for the remaining quarter-final spots, and the rest play for places 13–25. Women's teams move into second-round pools for places 1–6, 7–12 and 13–15.
Which Polish clubs are playing in Milan?
Two men's teams: KS Powiśle Warszawa in Group D and Team Poznań in Group C. Powiśle finished 4th at the 2025 European Club Championships. Team Poznań play in the opening round of matches, against KGV Essen at 12:00 on Friday.
Defending champions KSVH Berlin start against Deventer at 12:30 on Friday, and the title will be decided on Sunday at 15:15. Follow every match, result and group table on PaddleStats.