German beach volleyball stars Svenja Müller and Cinja Tillmann made a strong start to their CEV EuroBeachVolley title defense on Wednesday, the opening day of the 2025 tournament. Their decisive victory in Düsseldorf secured them a coveted spot in the elimination rounds.
Müller and Tillmann had no trouble earning their first victory in Düsseldorf.
Playing on home soil, the reigning champions were among 16 teams that kicked off their campaigns at the Rochus Club with a win, guaranteeing their presence in the knockout stages. An additional pool play victory would see them advance directly to the Round of 16.
Thursday will feature the completion of pool play, determining eight direct qualifiers for the Round of 16 and another 16 teams that will progress to the Round of 24, also scheduled for the same day. The Round of 16 and quarterfinals will follow on Friday, with the semifinals set for Saturday, and the medal matches culminating the event on Sunday.
CEV EuroBeachVolley 2025 – Women`s Tournament Highlights
Cheered on by their enthusiastic home fans, Müller and Tillmann experienced a smooth opening match. They comfortably defeated Spanish sisters Maria and Marta Carro with a dominant 2-0 (21-10, 21-13) sweep in Pool H, marking one of the most one-sided matches of the day in Düsseldorf.
In the other Pool H encounter, Polish duo Malgorzata Ciezkowska and Urszula Lunio also secured a straight-sets victory (21-19, 21-19) over Lithuanians Daniele Kvedaraite and Jekaterina Kovalskaja. Consequently, the German and Polish teams will now compete for the top spot in the pool on Thursday, while the Spanish and Lithuanian pairs will face each other in a battle for tournament survival.
Fellow German competitors Linda Bock and Louisa Lippmann delivered one of the day`s significant upsets in Pool E, triumphing over Lithuanian Olympians Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte in two sets (21-7, 21-16). Their next challenge will be French Olympians Clémence Vieira and Aline Chamereau, who began their campaign with a 2-0 (21-16, 21-18) win against Czech twins Anna and Katerine Pavelková.
Another German pair, Hanna-Marie Schieder and Karla Borger, also caused a stir on Wednesday, achieving a hard-fought three-set (19-21, 21-15, 15-9) comeback victory against Italians Claudia Scampoli and Giada Bianchi in Pool F. Their upcoming opponents will be Spanish Olympians Daniela Álvarez and Tania Moreno, who bested Finland’s Sara Sinisalo and Taru Lahti in two sets (21-18, 21-14).
The electrifying home crowd energy also propelled Sandra Ittlinger and Anna-Lena Grüne to victory in Düsseldorf. They defeated Dutch duo Mila Konink and Raisa Schoon in two sets (21-18, 21-18). The Germans are now poised for an exciting Pool C final against the Swiss Vergé-Dépré sisters, Anouk and Zoé, who dominated young Polish talents Julia Radelczuk and Natalia Okla with a 2-0 (21-12, 27-25) victory in their debut.
In Pool A, Italians Valentina Gottardi and Reka Orsi Toth, who overcame Lithuanians Ieva Dumbauskaite and Gerda Grudzinskaite in straight sets (21-17, 21-16), and Czechs Kylie Neuschaeferova and Marie-Sára Štochlová, who upset Ukrainians Valentyna Davidova and Anhelina Khmil with a 2-0 (21-18, 22-20) win, were the first teams to secure their places in the elimination rounds.
Orsi Toth digs in her first EuroBeachVolley match.
Pool B action commenced with Austrian sisters Dorina and Ronja Klinger sweeping (21-16, 21-11) German wildcards Chenoa Christ and Anna-Chiara Reformat. Following this, Ukrainians Yeva Serdiuk and Daria Romaniuk emerged victorious over Dutch Emi van Driel and Wies Bekhuis in a hard-fought three-set encounter (19-21, 23-21, 17-15).
Pool D is set for an exciting finale after two-time EuroBeachVolley champions, Latvians Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova, began their campaign with a 2-1 (16-21, 21-12, 16-14) victory against Spanish duo Sofía Izuzquiza and Sofía González. Simultaneously, Swiss pair Tanja Hüberli and Leona Kernen comfortably defeated Estonians Heleene Hollas and Liisa Remmelg in straight sets (21-9, 21-14) in their inaugural match.
Tina works at the net during the match against the Spanish.
French Olympians Lézana Placette and Alexia Richard, who bested Dutch Noa Sonneville and Brecht Piersma in two sets (21-18, 21-13), and Ukrainians Maryna Hladun and Tetiana Lazarenko, who swept (23-21, 21-9) Germans Janne Uhl and Paula Schürholz, will vie for a direct spot in the Round of 16 from Pool G on Thursday.
