It starts on October 1st, and the decision will be made on October 4th: Next week the spotlight will turn to Barcelona (ESP), where the Real Club de Polo will host the final of the nine teams in the 2026 Longines League of Nations. Ten nations have started the series; four gruelling qualifying rounds on three continents have reduced the field to eight: France, Germany, Great Britain, Brazil, Ireland, Belgium, the United States of America, and Italy. To them will be added host Spain in the final, making the field complete with nine teams.
France travels to Barcelona as the only nation to have won twice in the qualifying season. Edouard Couperie's team made a blitz start with a victory in the opening event in Abu Dhabi (UAE), before closing the circuit with a home victory in St. Tropez-Gassin (FRA). Julien Epaillard and Antoine Ermann return from this victorious squad and will be joined in Barcelona by Olivier Perreau, Nicolas Sers and Kevin Staut.
Germany followed France at the end of the qualification season in the overall standings in second place, after having achieved, among other things, second place in Abu Dhabi and victory in Ocala (USA). The team of Otto Becker then crowned this exceptional year with another major success when Germany won the team gold medal at the FEI World Championships in Aachen (GER) in August. Three team world champions – Marcus Ehning, Sophie Hinners and Richard Vogel – were nominated alongside Jörne Sprehe and the Longines League of Nations newcomer Kendra Claricia Brinkop. Vogel also comes into the team as the current world ranking leader, thus further strengthening the already highly-ranked German team, which wants to repeat its 2024 final victory. Richard Vogel, Christian Kukuk, Jana Wargers and André Thieme defeated the teams from the Netherlands and Sweden to take second and third place two years ago.
The 2025 title defender, Great Britain, returns to the venue where they finished triumphantly last season. The team of Di Lampard secured a qualifying victory in Rotterdam (NED). Scott Brash, Tim Gredley, Jessica Mendoza, Jack Whitaker and the series debutant Jodie Hall McAteer were nominated for Barcelona. Brash returns with particularly good memories of Barcelona after securing the decisive flawless ride against Ireland in the final heat of last year, securing the victory.
Brazil travels to Spain after narrowly missing out on victory in St. Tropez-Gassin. After the team of Pedro Paulo Luz Lacerda had already missed out on the top spot twice and also finished third in Abu Dhabi, they are now determined to finally win in Barcelona. João Victor Castro Aguiar Gomes de Lima, Stephan de Freitas Barcha and Pedro Junqueira Muylaert return from St. Tropez-Gassin and are supported by two of the most experienced Brazilian riders, Rodrigo Pessoa and Pedro Veniss.
Ireland also secured its place in the final after a consistent season by advancing to the second round at every qualifying tournament and finishing second in Ocala. Trevor Breen and Billy Twomey are supported by Jason Foley, Denis Lynch and Cian O’Connor when Ireland returns to the venue where it finished second behind Great Britain twelve months ago. Last year’s final ended in a tie between Twomey and Brash, from which Great Britain eventually emerged as the winner. Both will be back in Barcelona again, and Ireland will be aiming to overturn this result and advance a place in the title decider.
Belgium arrives in qualifying with two podium finishes: In Ocala, the team finished third just as in St. Tropez-Gassin. Niels Bruynseels, Abdel Saïd, Emilie Conter, Pieter Devos and Roy van Beek were nominated for the final, with Saïd and Devos competing with the Belgian team's silver medal from the World Championships in Aachen.
The United States of America and Italy secured the last two starting places after being tied for points in the qualifying standings.
The US team, led by Robert Ridland, missed out on victory in a dramatic showdown between three riders in Rotterdam by only 0.07 seconds – a result that was crucial for securing their place in the final. Laura Kraut, McKayla Langmeier, McLain Ward and Kristen Vanderveen will represent the United States of America in Barcelona.
Italy, on the other hand, became stronger as the qualifying season progressed, finishing fourth in Rotterdam and repeating that position in St. Tropez-Gassin, which propelled the team into the coveted top 8. Piergiorgio Bucci, Emanuele Camilli, Giampiero Garofalo, Giacomo Casadei and Giulia Martinengo Marquet were nominated, with Bucci, Camilli and Garofalo all having already been involved in the last qualification.
As the host country, Spain will have the public firmly behind them. The list of participants includes Julio Arias Cueva, Carlos Bosch Cebrian, Luis Jesus Escobar, Imma Roquet Autonell and Armando Trapote, who have been nominated for Spain.
In Round 1, each nation will field four athletes in Barcelona, with the three best results being counted. Unlike the qualifying rounds, all nations will return to Round 2 with only three athletes, and every result counts – so there is no room for error.