Four of the five Italian clubs will make their European debut his week. Perugia won its preliminary round and join Civitanova and Modena in the Champions League group phase. Meanwhile Piacenza will enter the 32nd of finals in the CEV Cup. Trento will come into play at a later date.
2017 Champions League
FORMULA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The top two of each group and the two best third classified will qualify for the next round. Playoffs 12, Playoffs 6 and final four follow that second phase. All the rounds have home and away games except for the final four.
Champions League on Tv
All the games will be on Fox Sports HD, SKY 204 channel, and Fox Sport Plus, channel 205. All the games are on streaming on www.laola1.tv)
Third last season following its elimination by Trentino, Civitanova is in group B. They will chase a second triumph after the one in 2002 and their first obstacle will be Berlin Recycling Volleys, winners of the last CEV Cup.
Third in the Italian league following their 3-2 win over Civitanova, Modena will begin their European campaign at home against Ljubljana. The Slovenian qualified from the preliminary round against the French of Arago de Sete. The two other teams of the group are Craiova (Romania) and Belchatow (Poland).
Fourth in the league table, Perugia made it into the group phase thanks to a preliminary round success over the Swiss of Amriswil. The team will fly to Turkey to take on Halkbank Ankara, coached by the Italian Camillo Placì. This will be the first of a tough group for the players of coach Bernardi, who will make his European debut against his former club. Roeselare (Belgium) and Belgorod (Russia) are the two other clubs.
LE 5 POOL
Pool A
Dinamo Moscow (RUS)
Zaksa Kedzierzyn-Kozle (POL)
Istanbul BBSK (TUR)
Noliko Maaseik (BEL)
Pool B
Cucine Lube Civitanova (ITA)
Asseco Resovia Rzeszow (POL)
Berlin Recycling Volleys (GER)
Dukla Liberec (CZE)
Pool C
Zenit Kazan (RUS)
Paris Volley (FRA)
Arkas Izmir (TUR)
VfB Friedrichshafen (GER)
Pool D
Azimut Modena (ITA)
S.C.M. “U” Craiova (ROU)
PGE Skra Belchatow (POL)
ACH Volley Ljubljana (SLO)
Pool E
Halkbank Ankara (TUR)
Knack Roeselare (BEL)
Belogorie Belgorod (RUS)
Sir Sicoma Colussi Perugia (ITA)
Schedule
CEV Champions League – Group phase round 1
Tuesday 6 December at 7.30pm
POOL B
Berlin Recycling Volleys (GER) – Cucine Lube Civitanova (ITA) Live on Fox Sports
Tuesday 6 December at 9pm
POOL D
Azimut Modena (ITA) – ACH Volley Ljubljana (SLO) On Fox Sports
Wednesday 7 December at 3.30pm (Italian time)
POOL E
Halkbank Ankara (TUR) – Sir Sicoma Colussi Perugia (ITA) Live on Fox Sports
PAST WINNERS
CHAMPIONS CUP (changed nomination in 2001)
1960 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1960/61 Rapid Bucarest (ROM)
1961/62 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1962/63 Rapid Bucarest (ROM)
1963/64 SC Leipzig (GDR)
1964/65 Rapid Bucarest (ROM)
1965/66 Dinamo Bucarest (ROM)
1966/67 Dinamo Bucarest (ROM)
1967/68 Spartak Brno (CEC)
1968/69 CSKA Sofia (BUL)
1969/70 Burevestnik Alma Ata (URSS)
1970/71 Burevestnik Alma Ata (URSS)
1971/72 Zetor Zbroyovka Brno (CEC)
1972/73 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1973/74 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1974/75 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1975/76 Dukla Liberec (CEC)
1976/77 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1977/78 Plomien Milowice (POL)
1978/79 Stella Rossa Bratislava (CEC)
1979/80 Klippan CUS Torino
1980/81 Dinamo Bucarest (ROM)
1981/82 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1982/83 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1983/84 Santal Parma
1984/85 Santal Parma
1985/86 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1986/87 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1987/88 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1988/89 CSKA Mosca (URSS)
1989/90 Philips Modena
1990/91 CSKA Mosca (C.S.I.)
1991/92 Il Messaggero Ravenna
1992/93 Il Messaggero Ravenna
1993/94 Edilcuoghi Ravenna
1994/95 Sisley Treviso
1995/96 Las Daytona Modena
1996/97 Las Daytona Modena
1997/98 Casa Modena Unibon
1998/99 Sisley Treviso
1999/00 Sisley Treviso
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
2000/01 Paris Volley (FRA)
2001/02 Lube Macerata
2002/03 Lokomotiv Belgorod (RUS)
2003/04 Lokomotiv Belgorod (RUS)
2004/05 Tours (FRA)
2005/06 Sisley Treviso
2006/07 VfB Friedrichshafen (GER)
2007/08 Dinamo Kazan (RUS)
2008/09 Trentino Volley
2009/10 Trentino BetClic
2010/11 Trentino BetClic
2011/12 Zenit Kazan (RUS)
2012/13 Lokomotiv Novosibirsk (RUS)
2013/14 Belogorie Belgorod (RUS)
2014/15 Zenit Kazan (RUS)
2015/16 Zenit Kazan (RUS)
2017 CEV Cup
FORMULA
29 teams in the starting blocks. The top 11 already qualified for the 16th of finals. All the rounds will be with home and away games. There won’t be any final four in this competition. T
Golden Set rule
A golden set must be played when the two teams have the same number of points after two games. A 3-0 or 3-1 win count for the same 3 points. There is two points given for a tie-break win and one point for a defeat.
THE ITALIANS
LPR Piacenza (32th of finals)
Diatec Trentino (16th of finals)
Winners of the Top Teams Cup in 2006 but out of the competition since 2010 (beaten in the semi-final by Cuneo), Piacenza is back in the second European Cup with a tie against the Byelorussians of Minsk in the 32nd of finals.
Bottom of the league at the end of the regular season last year, Giuliani’s men bounced back brilliantly to win the Challenge PLayoffs to qualify for this European Cup.
Finalist of the Champions League last season, beaten at the tie-break by Kazan, Trento will take part in the CEV Cup. Its last participation in this competition was in 2015, with a bitter final los tat the Golden Set against Dinamo Moscow.
Schedule
32nd of finals first leg
Thursday 8 December at 6pm
LPR Piacenza (ITA)- Stroitel Minsk (BLR)
Return leg
Tuesday 20 December at 4pm (Italian time)
Stroitel Minsk (BLR) – LPR Piacenza (ITA)
PAST WINNERS
TOP TEAMS CUP
(The Top Teams Cup used to be the second most important European Cup)
2001/02 Knack Roeselare (BEL)
2002/03 Piet Zoomers Apeldoorn (NED)
2003/04 Lokomotiv Kharkiv (UKR)
2004/05 Olimpiakos Pireo (GRE)
2005/06 Copra Berni Piacenza
2006/07 Autocommerce Bled (SLO)
CEV CUP
2007/08 M. Roma Volley
2008/09 Lokomotiv-Belogorie Belgorod (RUS)
2009/10 Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo
2010/11 Sisley Treviso
2011/12 Dinamo Moscow (RUS)
2012/13 Halkbank Ankara (TUR)
2013/14 Paris Volley (FRA)
2014/15 Dinamo Moscow (RUS)
2015/16 Berlin Recycling Volleys (GER)
