The Hague, Netherlands

The FIVB Beach Volleyball U18 World Championships take place in the Hague, Netherlands from July 8 to 12, 2026, bringing together the world’s most promising young athletes in one of the sport’s most established destinations.

The Hague has built a strong reputation as a host of major beach volleyball events, combining world-class facilities with a strong connection to the sport. The Netherlands has played a consistent role in the development of beach volleyball, making it a suitable host for this edition of the FIVB Beach Volleyball U18 World Championships. It is the second time the city hosts the event, after doing so in 2008.

The Hague was also the main hosting city for the senior FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships in 2015, and is set to welcome the sport’s premier event again in 2027. The city hosted as many as four editions of the CEV Beach Volleyball European Championships – in 2006, 2012, 2018 and 2024, in addition to eight FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour stops and one Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour event.

The Hague is the capital city of the South Holland province in the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the country. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, the Hague is the country's administrative center and its seat of government, and has been described as the country's de facto capital, while Amsterdam is the official capital of the Netherlands. Most foreign embassies in the Netherlands are in the Hague. It is also home to the headquarters of many Dutch companies. The Royal Library of the Netherlands is also located there. The Hague is known as the global hub of international law and arbitration. The International Court of Justice, the main judicial arm of the United Nations, is based in the city, as are the International Criminal Court, the Permanent Court of Arbitration and numerous other international governmental organizations.

The Hague has some small streets in the town center that may be dated from the late Middle Ages and several spacious streets boasting large and luxurious 18th-century residences built for diplomats and affluent Dutch families. It has a large church dating from the 15th century, a City Hall from the 16th century, several large 17th-century palaces, a 17th-century Protestant church and many important 18th-century buildings. The Hague has a canal system around the old city center, which is mainly used for boat tours around the city. The tallest buildings in the city are both 146-meter-tall ministries of Justice and Security and the Interior and Kingdom Relations of the Netherlands. Other significant skyscrapers include the Hoftoren, Het Strijkijzer and De Kroon. The Hague is the residence of the Dutch monarch, and several royal palaces can be found in the city. The Hague has numerous museums, most notably the Mauritshuis, which exhibits many paintings by old masters up to 1800, such as Johannes Vermeer, Rembrandt van Rijn and Paulus Potter.

The Hague is the largest Dutch city on the North Sea. The main beach resort Scheveningen, in the northwestern part of the city, is a popular destination for tourists as well as for inhabitants. Scheveningen forms a cultural center with its own cinema and musical theatre. Especially in the summer, most nightlife concentrates around the sea-front boulevard with its bars and restaurants. Several other attractions can be found in Scheveningen, such as the miniature park Madurodam, the Beelden aan Zee museum, and a Sea Life Center. In July or August, the Hague hosts a series of weekly firework displays by the sea front in Scheveningen, as part of an international fireworks festival and competition.

The number and variety of foreign residents make the city quite culturally diverse, with many foreign pubs, shops and cultural events.

The Hague experiences a temperate oceanic climate. Because of its location on the coast, it experiences milder winters and cooler summers than more inland locations. However, because of its location, it can also be extremely windy in the winter and humid in the summer. It also gets more sunshine. The mean daily temperature in July is 17.8°C.