Sweden bow out of European Championship with victory over Slovakia

[p]A 3-1 loss to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/greece/jZpx026C/"]Greece[/a] the previous day was [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/sweden/jB475yLK/"]Sweden[/a]'s fourth in a row in the tournament - their first European Championship since 1993 - and ended their hopes of reaching the knockout stages, having already been beaten by [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/italy/KYAO21L5/"]Italy[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/czech-republic/6HFFhPwi/"]Czech Republic[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/slovenia/bRQQqXZj/"]Slovenia[/a].[/p][p]But by securing victory over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/slovakia/dOuH8nUJ/"]Slovakia[/a], the [b]Swedes ensured they picked up their first win at EuroVolley since 1991[/b], two years after finishing second and taking home their only major medals to date.[/p][p]The long-awaited wait for a win looked set to continue after Slovakia won a set for just the second time in the tournament, coming from 4-2 down to lead 5-4 and continued to hold the lead from there, [b]extending it to a maximum of six points as they took victory, 25-19.[/b][/p][p]Slovakia then led 16-12 in the second set as Sweden struggled to build any momentum, but gradually they [b]chipped away at the lead and levelled at 21-21, then held their nerve to go 25-23 up[/b] - one of only two two-point leads they held in the set.[/p][embed guid="dc15e4ce-f90e-4e9d-9f84-9ac8357fae4f" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTZuHeQAGJ4" social-type="youtube" /][p]Set three was another close affair, as neither side led by more than two until Sweden went 17-14 clear, from which point [b]they maintained breathing space and went 2-1 up in the match with a 25-21 win.[/b][/p][p]The Slovaks led narrowly for much of the fourth set, but [b]from 15-13 down, Sweden then won 11 of the next 12 points - by far the most dominant period from either side throughout the match - to go 24-16 ahead[/b]. Slovakia added some respectability to the score, but Sweden closed out a 25-19 win that secured the match.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/volleyball/slovakia-dOuH8nUJ/sweden-jB475yLK/?mid=0hU9nQ46"]The 3-1 win[/a], coupled with their 3-2 loss to Czech Republic meant Sweden finish on four points. Slovakia remain on zero and therefore cannot take fifth place from the Swedes despite still having one more match to play.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/volleyball/europe/european-championships/"]Follow the 2026 Men's European Volleyball Championship on Flashscore.[/a][/b][/p]