The Dutch water polo players secured a ticket for the 2026 European Championship in Belgrade on Tuesday. The team of national coach Branko Mitrovic left nothing to chance against Poland at the qualifying tournament in Kranj, Slovenia: 26-3.
The Netherlands led 5-0 after the first period. That was followed by period scores of 10-1, 7-1 and 7-1.
Sebastian Hessels was the star on the Dutch side with six goals. Mart van der Weijden scored five times. In the fourth period, even goalkeeper Jelto Spijker managed to score a goal.
This ensured that the Netherlands easily qualified for next year’s European Championship in Belgrade. Earlier in the qualifying tournament, the Orange team won against Great Britain (27-3) and the Czech Republic (35-4).
On Wednesday, the final qualifying match against Slovenia will follow, which, like the Netherlands, has already qualified for the European Championship. Only the group win is at stake in this duel.
The Orange team won the European title in 1950, which is still the only major prize in the history of Dutch men’s water polo. Last year, the Netherlands finished eleventh at the European Championship.