The last day of men’s water polo World Championships group play culminated with the top team from each group – Italy, Spain, the United States, and Croatia – punching themselves a ticket to the quarterfinal. The bottom-ranked country in each group, which have all gone through group play without a win, are eliminated from consideration for the quarterfinal. These countries are South Africa, Australia, Singapore, and China. The eight countries ranked in the middle of the pack will compete amongst themselves for the final four quarterfinal spots.
The match between #2 Spain and #3 Hungary for the top rank in Group B made for the most thrilling match of the day. Spain, the 2025 World Cup champions, barely etched out a 10-9 win against Hungary. The Hungarians led for the majority of the game, boasting an 8-5 lead at the end of the third quarter. Spain turned it on in the face of pressure, scoring five goals in the final quarter of the game. Alvaro Granados stood out as the Spanish hero of the match, scoring each of Spain’s last two goals and four overall.
After a close penalty shootout win against #5 Serbia, #7 Italy closed out group competition with a much smoother win. They downed #25 South Africa 28-4.
Like Italy, the #6 United States ended the first round of play with a dominant win. Theirs came against Singapore in a 26-6 meeting. The other Group C match-up, #10 Brazil and #13 Canada went to a penalty shootout after an 11-11 tie. Brazil emerged victorious 18-17 after a lengthy shootout, but both teams will still vie for a spot in the quarterfinal this Friday.
The final group to automatically qualify for the quarterfinal was #1 Croatia. They faced their toughest opponent yet in #4 Greece, squeezing out a 10-9 victory. Marko Bijac made 14 saves while in goal for the Croatians.
Greece and Hungary, who lost 10-9 against Croatia and Spain respectively, emerge as frontrunners to score quarterfinal berths on Friday. #8 Montenegro has also had a strong week, upsetting Greece on the first day. Other teams squaring off for the final four spots include Serbia, Romania, Japan, Canada, and Brazil.
Group Standings Through 7/12 (Points)
Group A
#1 Italy — 8
#2 Serbia — 7
#3 Romania — 3
#4 South Africa — 0
Group B
#1 Spain — 9
#2 Hungary — 6
#3 Japan — 3
#4 Australia — 0
Group C
#1 United States — 9
#2 Brazil — 5
#3 Canada — 4
#4 Singapore — 0
Group D
#1 Croatia — 9
#2 Montenegro — 6
#3 Greece — 3
#4 China — 0
