The official draw for the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup 2026 has been successfully completed, marking the start of the journey towards the highly-anticipated World Cup Finals in Sydney, Australia in July.
A total of 60 teams from 34 countries are competing across the men’s and women’s Division 1 and Division 2 tournaments, and athletes, officials, representatives from participating Member Federations and water polo fans from around the world gathered to see the matchups confirmed at the draw ceremony.
A key innovation for the 2026 edition is the introduction of the league phase format in Division 2, designed to ensure fairness, transparency, and increased competitive balance.
Five teams from both the men’s and women’s Division 1 tournaments will advance to the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup Final, joined by the top two teams from Division 2 and the hosts Australia.
These eight teams will then compete for the coveted World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup title in Sydney at the legendary Olympic Park, where Australia’s women famously won gold at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
World’s best to go head-to-head in Division 1
Division 1 features the world’s highest-ranked national teams, including Olympic and World Aquatics Championships medallists.
The Men’s Water Polo World Cup Division 1 tournament will be held in Alexandroupoli, Greece from 6-12 April, featuring the following teams:
- Group A: Serbia, Netherlands, Hungary, Greece
- Group B: Italy, Spain, Croatia, United States of America
The Women’s Water Polo World Cup Division 1 tournament will be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands from 1-6 May, with the teams lining up as follows:
- Group A: United States of America, Hungary, Japan, Spain
- Group B: Italy, Greece, Netherlands, Australia
Under the competition structure, the top two teams from Group A and Group B will form a new group and play a full round robin, along with the teams placed third and fourth in both groups. Points are not carried over from Groups A and B.
This ensures all teams are fully ranked while competing for qualification, and the top five teams will advance to the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup – Final in Sydney.
New League Phase Format Introduced in Division 2
In Division 2, teams will compete in a revamped three-day league phase, where each team will play three matches against a mix of higher and similarly-ranked opponents. Teams were seeded based on their World Aquatics World Rankings, and divided into two pots.
In the league phase, the first day features cross-line matches between higher and lower-ranked teams, followed by teams facing opponents from their own pot on day two and a return to cross-line matches on day three.
The Men’s Water Polo World Cup Division 2 tournament will be held in Malta from 7-13 April, with the draw confirming the following matches:
The Women’s Water Polo World Cup Division 2 tournament will be held in Malta from 21-26 April, with the following matches drawn:
Teams are ranked in the league phase using the Tournament Performance Index, which considers match results, goal difference and strength of opposition.
The top teams advance to the knockout stage, where final rankings are decided the top two teams will qualify for the World Cup Finals in Sydney.
The winner of the Division 2 tournaments will also earn the right to compete in Division 1 at the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup 2027.
This new format guarantees that every team plays daily, faces a balanced mix of opponents, and competes under a transparent and objective ranking system.
Athlete Reactions
Hungary’s Olympic bronze medallist and Singapore 2025 silver medallist Kovacs-Csatlosne Szilagyi Dorottya expressed her excitement about the Finals being staged in Sydney:
"I lived in Australia until I was 16 years old, and I love the country. That is why I am especially excited to have the Final in Sydney and go back. Of course, first we have to qualify, which will not be easy, but I am sure that we will make it!"
Greek international and Olympic silver medallist Stelios Argyropoulos Kanakakis highlighted both his excitement and the challenge ahead:
“First of all, I am very happy to be here at the Draw Ceremony and see how it goes. Sydney is beautiful, I am really excited to see the city, but first of all we must qualify, which will be difficult, but our goal is to be in the Final. Our tournament will be in Alexandroupolis, which is a very nice and new swimming pool, and we will play in front of our home crowd. I don’t remember when it happened last time, so I am really looking forward to play in Greece with the national team.”
Road to Sydney
The World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup Final in Sydney will bring together the qualified teams to compete for the title and conclude the 2026 cycle.
World champions Spain are looking for their third consecutive World Cup title on the men’s side, while Greece’s women are hoping to build an outstanding 2025 which saw them win the World Cup and World Aquatics Championships gold in Singapore.
However, competition is set to be more intense than ever, and with the draw now complete teams can begin preparations for an exciting World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup.