British youngsters prepare for 2nd Next Generation Cup in Barcelona

Great Britain’s new men’s and women’s U20 water polo squads are heading to Barcelona for the 2nd Next Generations Cup next month.

The three-day competition takes place from Friday 20 to Sunday 22 September and is hosted by the Barcelona International Water Polo Academy (BIWPA) and club side Club Natació Sabadell.

The event will mark the first tournament for both teams – which were set up in April – to help the nation prepare for the 2026 European Water Polo Championships following a change in age groups at European competitions.

It will be held at CN Sabadell’s indoor Olympic pool where all the clubs Champions League games for both their senior men’s and women’s teams take place.

The high-level event is set to feature a number of top youth teams from Spain and all across Europe. Great Britain’s U19 men’s side were amongst the teams to compete at the inaugural event last year where they gained valuable experience against teams from eight different countries.

Two of that side in Alastair Cook and Murray Dickson both return to the event year where Cook particularly impressed, netting a hat-trick in the team’s final match against Italian side Como Nuoto.

This time round, the women’s side will also travel to Spain with a squad that features four athletes from the European U17 Championships 12 months ago.

Eva Barnes, Christina English, Ann Kilb and Laura Skelton all featured at the tournament in Turkey where Great Britain finished in 13th place and will get more opportunity to gain international experience when they head to Spain.

An important experience

Speaking ahead of the event, Swim England water polo programme lead, Craig Figes said: “Competition experience is vital for both of these teams as they continue their development.

“It’s the first tournament for the U20 squads and therefore we are very much looking forward to seeing the development of the athletes throughout the matches.

“We know that this event in Barcelona is a really strong one which will provide a good challenge to play against some professional players from some of the top young sides in Europe.

“It will also allow the group to enjoy the incredible facilities available in Sabadell throughout the weekend and help bring the members of these new squads together as we head into the new season.

“Thank you to all of the coaches and team staff for their continued support for all our athletes and to everyone at BIWPA for putting on what promises to another great three-days of water polo.”

The competition is set to be live streamed on BIWPA’s YouTube channel with results and statistics available through TotalWaterpolo.