Overview

Croatia won this crown in 2016 and is back on top again after leading USA for most of the match but having to equalise in the last 12 seconds to force a shootout. The rotation was drawn 3-3 and then it went to sudden death with Croatia winning on eighth shot.

Spain was 12-8 up in the bronze-medal match and had to fend off a determined Montenegro before winning 13-12 with Montenegro nearly scoring on the buzzer, being denied the first shootout of the tournament.

In the lower play-offs, Greece beat Serbia for fifth; outgoing champion Hungary outlasted Italy 16-3 for seventh; New Zealand turned the tables on Turkiye for ninth after having fallen to the Turks in the crossovers and needing thew last two goals to win; Canada held off China 15-14 for 11^th; Australia tumbled a late-charging Brazil 18-14 for 13^th and Singapore downed Colombia 22-19 for 15^th classification.

Final Placings:

1. Croatia
2. United States of America
3. Spain
4. Montenegro
5. Greece
6. Serbia
7. Hungary
8. Italy
9. New Zealand
10. Turkiye
11. Canada
12. China
13. Australia
14. Brazil
15. Singapore
16. Colombia
17. South Africa
18. Argentina
19. Portugal
20. Hong Kong

Awards

Most Valuable Player

Tyler Anderson (USA)

Best Goalkeeper

Nikola Batos (CRO)

Highest Goal-Scorer

Ilias Angelopoulos (GRE) — 35

Media All Star Team
Goalkeeper
Nikola Batos (CRO)
Centre Forward
Ilias Angelopoulos (GRE)
Field Players
Tyler Anderson (USA)
Dimitrios Chatzis (GRE)
Nardo Dragas (CRO)
Andrej Durutovic (MNE)
Kai Kaneko (USA)

Match Reports

Match 62. Classification 1-2, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 20 CROATIA 21 in sudden-death penalty shootout. FT:14-14. Pens: 6-7 (4-6, 3-2, 4-4, 3-2)

Croatia relived the triumph of 2016 when it defeated Montenegro 16-13 in the final. Today, it was harder to get to the line, needing sudden-death penalty shootout to eclipse USA after the match was tied at 14 by the final buzzer and locked at 17-17 after the first rotation. It was the eighth shot of sudden death that found the winner. This was a relatively clean match in comparison to the rest with pure water polo coming to the fore. USA was in its first final and went home with a first medal at this level, a brilliant achievement. Croatia becomes only the second team to win the title twice after Hungary who has three.

USA opened the scoring and led 2-1 before Croatia levelled, played catch-up and then threw the next two goals for 5-3 ahead. Player-of-the-championship Tyler Anderson replied and Petar Erenda nailed his second for 6-4 at the first break. Goals were traded at the start of the second quarter with Anderson scoring off the left post on extra. Nardo Skejic, named player of the match, started his goal-fest from the top right. Jett Taylor, which secured the USA second goal, flipped in two — penalty and extra — to narrow the margin to one by halftime.

Nardo Dragas, so potent throughout the week, shot a penalty goal, followed by Petar Erenda’s second on counter and Skejic’s second off a cross pass. Croatia had a four-goal advantage. Captain Kai Kaneko, who led the team with inspiration and guts, wristed in a snap shot, followed by Jackson Shaw on counter. Both teams took a timeout to no avail. Taylor netted his fourth with a looping shot from centre forward that only just crossed the line. It was 12-11 to Croatia heading into the final quarter. Dexter Black equalised from top right two minutes into the final period. Skejic rocketed a shot off the left post on extra with his wicked left arm. Anderson backhanded a shot from centre forward for 13-13 at 3:50 and it was “game on”. Aden Shin scored his ninth and most important goal of the tournament when he finished many passes on extra for 14-13 at 1:16. The gold medal was now much closer.

Croatia went to a timeout at 25 seconds left and Skejic came up with the equaliser, sending the ball into the top right from top right with 12 seconds left on the clock for 14-14. USA had the last shot but it was easily collected by goalkeeper Nikola Batos. This sent the match to penalties. USA missed its first and fourth while Croatia, who shot first, had the last two of the rotation fail to make the mark. Anderson sent the match to sudden death. Croatia nailed the first four and USA three with Taylor’s shot hitting the post, sending the Croatians into raptures. It was 18 shots of penalty drama.

Match Heroes
Skejic threw five for Croatia and Erenda three. Taylor buried four goals for USA with Anderson and captain Kaneko (19 for the week) shooting three each.

Turning Point
Croatia taking the early lead off USA and sustaining the pressure until early in the fourth when USA came alight, usurping Croatia at 1:16 in the last only for Croatia to level with 12 seconds remaining.

Stats Don’t Lie
Croatia converted four from six and defended four of seven. USA netted two penalty goals and Croatia one. Croatia took the steals at eight-five and USA shot more at 35 to 33.

Match 61. Classification 3-4, MONTENEGRO 12 SPAIN 13 (54-3, 2-4, 2-3, 4-3)

Spain may not have gained the crown that has been missing from the mantlepiece for long, but it did gain a second bronze to go with its two silvers. Spain last won bronze in 2022 before slipping to fifth in 2024. For Montenegro, it was a reversal of its 2024 clash with Italy when it won bronze. Montenegro started with the first wo goals and Spain was equal to the task. Goals were traded and Stefan Vranes gave Montenegro the 4-3 quarter-time lead with a six-metre shot. Danilo Roganovic scored an identical shot to his first, this time on extra from the top and Montenegro was two up. This changed quickly as Spain crashed home four goals for the 7-5 advantage, something it would not relinquish. Enzo Fernandez, who scored twice in the first period, drilled from the top with the next goals on counter, extra and a rifle shot from Javier Sanchez-Toril, son of head coach Javier Sanchez-Toril. Andrej Durutovic, the bright light on his team, converted extra from wide left for 7-6 behind at the long break.

Pol Suarez scored one of the neatest goals of the tournament, moving close to goal from bottom right and flipping the ball in the bottom right, millimetres from the line. Mauro Millan scored on extra from deep right and Spain was three up. Goals were swapped and Vranes sent a missile in from a six-metre shot to close the period at 10-8 in Spain’s favour. Sanchez-Toril pleased his dad again on extra and Unai Arrate backhanded a goal from centre forward for 12-8 by 2:36 in the fourth quarter. Roganovic on extra, Luka Savic from the top right and Durutovic off the right-post position with a near pass closed the gap to one by 1:12. Sanchez-Toril earned more brownie points at home, sliding the ball over the line on extra. The excitement proved too much for assistant coach Victor Gonzalez as he was red-carded (probably being over-enthusiastic and standing). Roganovic hammered one home from deep left at 0:30 and both teams went to a timeout. Montenegro’s last chance to equalise came after the two-second allowance before the final buzzer. The ball went straight to Luka Todorovic at right-hand catch who lobbed, beat the keeper and hit the far crossbar — just centimetres too high to force a shootout.

Match Heroes
Sanchez-Toril and Fernandez scored three each for Spain with nine different scorers. Roganovic was the match star with five goals and Durutovic with three.

Turning Point
Spain going from 5-3 down to 7-5 ahead in less than five minutes. From there it was unsurpassed.

Stats Don’t Lie
Spain nailed six from nine on extra and Montenegro five from nine. Both teams converted a penalty foul; Spain won the steals 15-nine and shot 32- to 29.

Match 60. Classification 5-6, GREECE 13 SERBIA 8 (5-1, 5-3, 0-2, 3-2)

Greece was another team to lose just the one match (10-8 to Montenegro in the quarterfinals), but at least finished fifth after emerging from the lower group where it was inexplicably seeded. Greece was champion in 2014 and finished sixth in 2024. The victory was structured on a 5-1 first quarter that swelled to 9-2 late in the second quarter. The Greek rage started with the first three goals with a Serbian reply and two more Greek strikes as well as a saved penalty attempt. Milan Zelic scored the second-quarter opener with a six-metre shot but Greece ripped in the next four with superstar centre forward Ilias Angelopoulos scoring twice and Kosmas Patsilinakos adding an extra-man goal to his first-quarter penalty shot. At 9-2 down, Serbia went to a timeout to restructure. It scored twice either side of another Angelopoulos high cross-pass drag down.

Surprisingly, Serbia stamped its authority on the third period and kept Greece locked up in its cage. Zelic opened on penalty and closed on extra from the deep left. Greece was back with a vengeance in the fourth period with the first two goals and Serbia responded with the next two on extra. It was 4:46 and still in with a chance. However, both teams worked hard on defence and at 3:29, Spyridon Deligiannis accepted a cross pass to the right-post position to score the final goal on extra and take home fifth position.

Match Heroes
Angelopoulos with three goals (35 shots at 79.5 per cent — six more than team-mate Dimitrios Chatzis) as nine of his Greek team-mates made the sheet. Dimitrios Berdes made 10 saves in goal. For Serbia, Zelic claimed three and five of his mates also scored. Captain Mihailo Gosic dragged in 11 saves from goal.

Turning Point
The 5-1 start was something Serbia could not come back from, especially as it ballooned to 9-2.

Stats Don’t Lie
Greece converted five from 11 on extra and stopped a huge 12 from 17. Greece missed one of its three penalty attempts and Serbia scored its one; Greece took the steals at six-five and the shots at 33-30.

Match 59. Classification 7-8, HUNGARY 16 ITALY 13 (6-4, 3-4, 1-3, 6-2)

Outgoing champion Hungary had to settle for seventh position — its worst showing at this level, as it has stood on the podium for the previous six editions and won it three times. It was a repeat of the appalling 2012 final, which ended in mayhem and multiple exclusions not favouring Hungary. Italy won on that occasion. Today it was mostly all Hungary with a few bright breakouts by Italy, who finished fourth in 2024. Hungary opened with the first two, Leonardo Madaschi replied from the top and Hungary crashed home the next three for 5-1 at 3:34. Antonio Chianese and Francesco Corelli, both on extra, pulled it back. Benedek Rabb responded and Corelli nailed his second from the top right. Chianese had his penalty hit the crossbar leaving the quarter-time score at 6-4. Chianese on counter and Leonardo Nicolia, the previous day’s hero, converted a penalty foul for the 6-6 equaliser. Despite a Hungarian timeout, Corelli punched Italy ahead off the left post. Rabb replied in a trade and Abel Tigyi scored his second on extra. Dejan Divjak regained the lead on counter for 9-8 at the long break.

Goals were traded to start the second half and two Italian goals meant it retook the lead at 11-10 by the final break. Hungary threw in the first three of the final period for a 13-11 advantage. Matyas Kovacs pushed it out to a three-goal differential after a contra foul was awarded and Hungary found itself with two free men to score, a blunder that proved costly for Italy. Goals were swapped twice more with Madaschi scoring twice on extra for 15-13 at 0:34. Rabb plundered the final goal on the buzzer from the top to secure the victory.

Match Heroes
Hungarian captain Rabb with four goals while nine of his team-mates scored. Csaba Kiraly took in 12 saves from goal. For Italy, Corelli, Chianese and Madaschi scored three each. The goalkeepers dragged down nine saves between them.

Turning Point
Hungary going 5-1; Italy controlling five minutes of the second quarter and three minutes over the last break before Hungary regained winning momentum at 6:26 in the fourth.

Stats Don’t Lie
Hungary converted seven of 17 on extra and Italy six of 11. Italy missed one of its two penalty attempts. Hungary won the steals and led shooting at 35-34.

Match 58. Classification 9-10, NEW ZEALAND 15 TURKIYE 14 (4-3, 3-3, 42-3, 6-5)

These two teams clashed in the crossovers and Turkiye won 11-10 after having a four-goal advantage at the start of the fourth quarter. Today, New Zealand led for the first three quarters and regained the lead — and the win — inside the final two minutes. Like that first match, two players dominated for their countries — Riley Swindells (NZL) and Demir Gulsoy (TUR). Baz Dunn set the pool alight with the first two goals from centre forward. Goals were then swapped with Turkiye striking a third through Ender Sarac on extra from the deep right for 4-3 at the buzzer. Jacob Keightley and Swindells started the second quarter with Gulsoy and Max Norwell trading. Demir Pekcanli converted extra off the right-post position with a near pass and Gulsoy closed the period on penalty for 7-6.

Batur Yildiz equalised on extra and Swindells straddled another Gulsoy extra-man goal for 9-8. Eymen Altay was red-carded for over-zealous play at centre defence at 4.00. Gulsoy sent in a penalty two minutes later for 9-9 at the last break. He did the same to start the fourth period to give Turkiye the lead for the first time. Yildiz added more salt to the wound for the Kiwis, drilling from the top. Swindells at centre forward and Yildiz from the top right swapped goals. Norwell then came good with a score from the top and the second on counter to level at 12. Aras Ulas drove to the left post and accepted a cross pass for 13-12. Dunn found himself free at two metres to score and Pekcanli did the same for Turkiye. Swindells equalised from deep left and repeated the shot on the next attack to regain the lead at 1:47. Turkiye had shots saved on block and goalkeeper save; New Zealand had a shot saved; Turkiye went to a timeout and the resulting pass to centre forward was stolen and New Zealand played out the last 14 seconds for ninth place, its best finish at this level, bettering 2012’s 10^th position. Turkiye was 11^th two years ago and its best finish was at home for sixth in 2014.

Match Heroes
Swindells with a magnificent seven goals, Dunn and Norwell with three each for the Kiwis. Gulsoy was again Turkiye’s best with five goals and Yildiz snapped in four. Deniz Kaleagasi made 10 saves in goal.

Turning Point
Turkiye stealing the leading at the top of the fourth period and New Zealand regaining control inside the final two minutes.

Stats Don’t Lie
New Zealand scored all three extra-man attempts and defended three from seven.

Match 57. Classification 11-12 CHINA 14 CANADA 15 (3-3, 4-2, 4-4, 3-6)

Canada came good with a buzzer-beater goal to secure 11th position in what was a thrilling encounter. Canada scored the first goal but China quickly gained the ascendancy with the next three. Canada snuck back with the last two and it was even at the first break. Nash Porter started the second for Canada with a six-metre shot. Li Zhangzen replied on a centre-forward drive. Goals were traded and Lu Hancheng, who scored China’s opener, put two more in the bag, the first on extra and the second on penalty for 7-5 at 1:07. Neither side converted their shots before halftime.

Lu scored a third straight goal to start the second half, converting extra. Liu Yaozhong scored off the far post with Porter responding from deep left on extra for 9-6. There were two trades and Oliver Rais was in both for Canada with the first from nine metres and the other from seven metres. Liu picked up his second of the period. There was frenetic action in the final quarter with two trades getting it to 13-11 by 5:18, Liu and Ivan Khramtsov in the mix. Khramtsov and Sun Boyang on counter, for his second in the period, lifted the score to 14-12. Noah Loo struck from top right for Canada and Khramtsov followed on extra off the left-post position for the leveller. China went to a timeout at 2:29 but could find no way through. Canada called timeout at 0:20 and the play set up. It did not look good close in, so Darion Wang, who scored the second goal, blasted from top right to secure the goal — and victory — with 1.6 seconds left on the clock. The Chinese shot was blocked. Canada had 11^th position, three places better than 2024. China, who surprisingly made the top eight in original seedings, improved on its 17^th place two years ago.

Match Heroes
Khramtsov with five goals; Elliot King with 11 saves in the Canadian goal and Wang for that winning shot. Lu sent in four and captain Liu three for China.

Turning Point
China wrested the lead twice and controlled most of the match, except for the start and a short period in the second quarter. Then it was behind for the lasty second!

Stats Don’t Lie
Canada converted four from seven on extra and China three from six. China missed one of its three penalty attempts. Canada won the steals five to four and the shots 37-36.

Match 56. Classification 13-14, AUSTRALIA 18 BRAZIL 14 (6-3, 1-2, 5-2, 4-5)

Australia normally finds itself in the seven-11 bracket at these championships but vagaries of the draw saw it lose one match and eventually have to play for 13^th, which it did. Brazil was ninth last time when Australia was 10^th. Brazil also finished ninth at the first edition in Perth, Australia in 2012 when Australia was seventh. Australia led and Brazil played catch-up to 2-2 before Australia went to 5-2, finishing the quarter at 6-3. Centre forward Toby Gould netted twice for the Aussies. Savo Todic had his penalty attempt saved at the top of the second quarter but Mitchell Lazarus saved the day with a centre-forward turn for 7-3. The Aussie impetus dimmed somewhat as Brazil scored twice, Australia scored twice and Brazil scored the next double with Joao Horst gaining his second, for 9-7 at halftime.

Australia regained its mojo with three straight goals to start the second half — Cooper Semmens from wide right, Todic and Lachlan Davies on counter. Davies found no luck from the penalty line; Horst responded on extra and Gould snared a goal on the left-post position off a near pass for 13-8. Danilo Martins, kept scoreless in this match after some great performances, converted extra and after a challenge, Australia gained a penalty shot, converted by Dylan Jennison. The challenge was made before Australia scored on action but it had to be rewound and Australia was 14-9 ahead at the last break. Todic scored twice in the first two minutes of the last period; both teams took a timeout to no effect other than a rest; Luca Avallone for his second and Winter pushed up Brazil’s score and Gould took an air ball at centre forward on extra for 17-11. Jennison and Martins swapped goals and the last two came from Winter on counter and Martins on extra to close the gap to 18-14.

Match Heroes
Gould was best in pool with four goals for Australia while captain Davies and Todic grabbed three each. The goalkeepers did well to thwart many Brazilian attacks with Alexander Woolfe making nine saves and Jake Cox five. For Brazil, Winter, Horst and Martins notched three goals. Victor Hugo de Souza took in 12 of the 14 goalkeeper saves.

Turning Point
At 5-2, Australia had the match in hand and kept using that buffer.

Stats Don’t Lie
Australia converted five from nine on extra and Brazil six from 10. Australia missed two of the four penalty attempts; drew the steals at six and outshot Brazil 45-33, however, Brazil had a 42.4 per cent conversion rate to the Aussies’ 40 per cent.

Match 55. Classification 15-16, SINGAPORE 22 COLOMBIA 19 (4-1, 4-8, 7-4, 7-6)

Singapore made it two wins over Colombia in Rio Maior, finishing ahead today after a 16-15 decision on day three in the preliminary group stage. South Africa was 16^th the last time it appeared in 2022, so this is one rung up the ladder. Colombia was 20^th two years ago, so this is a big step up although its best finish was 12^th in 2018. In that earlier encounter, Marcus Gomez scored six goals for Colombia. Today he amassed a tournament-high 12 goals and it was a case that if he was guarded, it does not matter as he will take the ball and score. This he did on numerous occasions, dominating the hole position and a career in the sport could be his if he wishes. He was easily the best player in the pool, although he needed his players to pass accurately him the ball to make scoring easier. Singapore had the team, more all-round than Colombia and used those skills frequently .Singapore started the scoring and Gomez replied quickly, but Singapore went to 4-1 at the quarter break and rose to 7-2. Gomez and Gabriel Low exchanged goals for 8-3 and Singapore was sitting pretty. However, Gomez struck twice from centre forward, plucking one out of the air as the team shot to 9-8 ahead with Gomez adding another and Sebastian Zapata scoring twice. It was a spectacular performance for the halftime lead.

Low traded with Gomez — who else? Then Singapore went on the run with Yong Chow starting and Goh grabbing two more for 12-10. Colombia challenged and gained a penalty goal to Nicolas Vasquez and Gomez shifted from two metres to accept the ball and score for 12-12. Singapore went to a timeout and came out with the next three goals with Justin Saik, who scored two in the opener and a third in the second period, grabbed two more opening a three-goal margin. Gomez backhanded at centre forward for 15-13 at the close of the third period. Goals were exchanged, Goh, Saik and Qays Rohaizad brought the match to 19-15 at 5:31. Gomez was in a double swap as Chow added to his tally twice. Gomez had two on him at two metres but he took the pass and scored for 21-18 at 1:30. Vasquez and Low swapped, the last on penalty and Singapore finished 15^th, despite not being able to contain Gomez.

Match Heroes
Gomez with his 12 goals — a stunning performance — boosted his numbers to 31 for the week. Zapata backed him up with four goals for Colombia. For the victor, Saik nailed six, Chow and Goh five each and Low three.

Turning Points
Singapore’s early lead; Colombia’s seven-goal reply and then Singapore controlling the match breaking from 12-12.

Stats Don’t Lie
Singapore went six from 11 on extra and Colombia two from three. Singapore put away all four penalty attempts and Colombia one. The steals went 14-10 Singapore’s way and the shots 39-34.

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