The 2015–16 CEV Women's Champions League was the 57th edition of the CEV Women's Champions League, the highest level of European club volleyball.
Teams The number of participants on the basis of ranking list for European Cup Competitions:
RankCountry Number of teamsTeams (rankings in 2014–15 national championships)13Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul (1)VakıfBank Istanbul (2)Eczacıbaşı VitrA Istanbul (3)23Dinamo Kazan (1)Dinamo Moscow (2)Uralochka-NTMK Ekaterinburg (3)32RC Cannes (1)Rocheville Le Cannet (2)42+1Telekom Baku (1)Lokomotiv Baku (2)Azerrail Baku (3) W/C52+1Chemik Police (1)PGE Atom Trefl Sopot (2)Impel Wrocław (3) W/C62Dresdner SC (1)Allianz MTV Stuttgart (2)72+1Pomì Casalmaggiore (1)Igor Gorgonzola Novara (2)Nordmeccanica Piacenza (3) W/C81CS Volei Alba Blaj (1)91Voléro Zürich (1)101Agel Prostějov (1)111Vizura Beograd (1)121Calcit Ljubljana (1)
Format
League round 24 teams were drawn to 6 pools of 4 teams each. The 1st and 2nd qualified for the Playoff 12 The organizer of the Final Four were determined after the end of the League Round and qualified directly for the Final Four. The team of the organizer of the Final Four was replaced by the best 3rd ranked team with the best score.
The next 4 third-placed teams will move to the Challenge Round of the CEV Cup.
The remaining teams will be eliminated.
In the League Round, the placing of the teams is determined by the number of matches won. In case of a tie in the number of matches won by two or more teams, they will be ranked on the basis of the following criteria: match points; set quotient (the number of total sets won divided by the number of total sets lost); points quotient (the number of total points scored divided by the number of total points lost); results of head-to-head matches between the teams in question.
Playoff round The playoffs will consist of two rounds: Playoff 12 and Playoff 6. Each round is played in two legs.
If the teams are tied after two legs, a "Golden Set" is played. The winner is the team that first obtains 15 points, provided that the points difference between the two teams is at least 2 points (thus, the Golden Set is similar to a tiebreak set in a normal match).
At each leg, points are awarded to the teams in the same manner as in the Group Round (3 for 3:0 or 3:1, 2 for 3:2 etc.). So, if team A defeat team B in the first leg 3:0 and lose in the second leg 1:3, team A does not advance to the next round (as it would have been expected on the basis of analogy with football competitions), but the two teams are tied with 3 points each, and a Golden Set is played.
The three teams that win in Playoff 6 round advance to the Final Four along with the organizer of the Final Four.
Pools composition The drawing of lots was held in Vienna, Austria on 2 July 2015. The 24 participated teams of the competition were divided by 4 pots based on the latest European Cups Ranking List and their National Rankings. Exception, the teams which received wild cards had to be in the 4th pot. Pool APool BPool C Dinamo Kazan Vakıfbank Istanbul Eczacıbaşı VitrA Istanbul Lokomotiv Baku PGE Atom Trefl Sopot Chemik Police Allianz MTV Stuttgart Igor Gorgonzola Novara Pomì Casalmaggiore Azerrail Baku Calcit Ljubljana Agel Prostějov Pool DPool EPool F Uralochka-NTMK Ekaterinburg Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul Dinamo Moscow RC Cannes Telekom Baku Rocheville Le Cannet Voléro Zürich Dresdner SC CS Volei Alba Blaj Vizura Beograd Impel Wrocław Nordmeccanica Piacenza
Squads
League round All times are local.
Pool A
Pool B
Pool C
Pool D
Pool E
Pool F
Ranking of third-placed teams
Playoffs
PoolWinnersRunners-upThird placeA Dinamo Kazan Lokomotiv BakuB Vakıfbank Istanbul PGE Atom Trefl Sopot C Pomì Casalmaggiore (F4 Hosts) Eczacıbaşı VitrA Istanbul Chemik Police (Lucky Loser)D Voléro Zürich Uralochka-NTMK EkaterinburgE Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul Dresdner SCF Dinamo Moscow Nordmeccanica Piacenza
All times are local.
Playoff 12
First leg
Second leg
Playoff 6
First leg
Second leg
Final four Organizer: Pomì Casalmaggiore Venue: PalaGeorge, Montichiari, Italy All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+02:00). In case that two teams from the same country qualify for the semifinals, they will have to play each other.
Semifinals
3rd place match
Final
Final standing
RankTeam Pomì Casalmaggiore VakıfBank Istanbul Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul4 Dinamo Kazan
Qualified for the 2016 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship
2015–16 Women's Club European Champions Pomì Casalmaggiore 1st title Roster for Final FourHead coach
Awards
Most valuable player Francesca Piccinini (Pomì Casalmaggiore) Best setter Carli Lloyd (Pomì Casalmaggiore) Best outside spikers Kim Yeon-Koung (Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul) Kimberly Hill (VakıfBank Istanbul) Best middle blockers Eda Erdem Dündar (Fenerbahçe Grundig Istanbul) Jovana Stevanović (Pomì Casalmaggiore) Best opposite spiker Margareta Kozuch (Pomì Casalmaggiore) Best libero Gizem Örge (VakıfBank Istanbul)
References
External links Official website