The 2025 World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup season will follow the format first used in 2023. It will feature two qualification tournaments for men and women, with the top-performing teams earning qualification to the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup 2025 - Super Finals and World Aquatics Championships—Singapore 2025

The Water Polo World Cup format will consist of two levels – with the top twelve men’s and eight women’s teams in Division 1. 

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Bucharest, Romania, will host the Men’s Division 1 tournament from 7-12 January 2025. The following eleven countries have earned qualification through their earlier international play: Croatia, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Japan, Romania, Serbia, Spain, and the United States of America.

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Alexandroupolis, Greece, will host the Women’s Division 1 tournament from 14-19 January 2025. The following eight teams have earned their place in the tourney: Australia, Greece, Hungary, Netherlands, Israel, Italy, Spain, and the United States of America. 

World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup 2025 | Istanbul, Turkiye Hosts the Men's & Women's Division 2 Tournaments 

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Istanbul, Turkiye will host the men's and women's Division 2 tournaments. The women's tournament will run from 14 to 17 December 2024, and the men's tournament will immediately follow, running from 18 to 21 December 2024.

The men's and women's Division 2 tournaments are open to any team from Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.

Six teams from Division 1 and two from Division 2 will qualify for the men's and women's Water Polo World Cup 2025—Super Final. 

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World Aquatics Water Polo Technical Committee Chair Tamas Molnar noted the importance of the calendar announcement.

"We've seen this new World Cup format elevate water polo to new heights. With the calendar dates now set, teams can begin their final preparations. We've worked closely with our stakeholders to ensure the competition windows and event hosts align with existing water polo schedules, minimising disruptions. We're excited to have Alexandroupolis (GRE), Istanbul (TUR), Novi Sad (SRB) holding our upcoming events, and we look forward to officially announcing the hosts for the men's and women's World Aquatics Water Polo Super Finals soon."

The competition date windows and hosts for the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup 2025 will be as follows:

Men

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  • Division 1: Bucharest (ROM) from 7-12 January 2025
  • Division 2: Istanbul (TUR) from 18-21 December 2024
  • Super Final: Host TBD, from 18-20 April 2025

Women

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  • Division 1: Alexandroupolis (GRE) from 14-19 January 2025
  • Division 2: Istanbul (TUR) from 14-17 December 2024
  • Super Final: Host TBD, from 11-13 April 2025