Sunday night and all teams had just played their last matches of the group stage at the Team Event of the 2021 European U17 Championships in Podčetrtek, Slovenia. All cameras were on, ready for the draw for the final stage, and this is how it went.

Last time the European U17 Championships took place, in 2019 in Poland, Russia and Ukraine claimed a bronze medal. This time will be different, as they will be facing each other in the quarterfinals of this year’s event.

Ukraine has come out on top in a strong group that included England and Germany, winning 3-2 against both. Standing on their way to the podium will be Russia, who were the reigning champions for five consecutive events from 1995 to 2003 and since then have got their hands on two silvers and two bronze medals. 

Denmark is on the lookout for another gold. The reigning champions have kept that title for eight Team Events on a row and to have the chance to keep it for a ninth time, they will first have to win against Turkey in the quarterfinals.

In the 2017 event, both times faced each other in the fight for gold, where Turkey had to settle for silver. This time, the team has been doing well again, staying as one of the undefeated and showing that they can reach the finals again.

1997 was the last and only time the Czech Republic earned a medal in the event, where they won silver. In the last three days, they have won 5-0 against Slovakia, Switzerland, and Austria, so it remains to be seen if they can achieve the same against their quarterfinal opponents.

Sweden is the only unseeded team who has grabbed a spot in quarterfinals. They got off to a good start winning 3-2 against Poland, and continued even in a better way by beating Croatia and Belgium 5-0.

France have not won a medal in the Team Event for quite some time — they got a bronze in 2016 —, but it has even been a longer time for Spain, who have seen eight events passing without not reaching the podium.

However, they both have the chance now to fight for a win and perhaps win a long-awaited medal. France remains undefeated in the event so far, while Spain have also got good results but faced a challenge with Bulgaria, although they eventually got a win, 3-2. The two strong teams will be facing each other tomorrow.

The draw makes for an interesting quarterfinals morning and Podčetrtek will surely be hosting some exciting matches. Make sure to watch all the action from Slovenia live on www.badmintoneurope.tv.