With the group stage over, on September 17 the quarterfinals of the FIP Senior World Cup 2026 got underway in Buenos Aires. Sixteen teams kept the dream of the title alive, including the reigning champions: Spain in the women’s competition and Argentina in the men’s.
Ruthless favorites and comebacks to remember
In the men’s draw, Argentina made the most of their champion status and the backing of their home crowd to beat Finland convincingly. The pairs Malacalza/Poggi, Lamperti/Gutiérrez and Gómez Silingo/Quiles sealed the 3-0 in the +40, +45 and +50 categories, respectively.
Italy also went through after beating Sweden 3-1, with wins from Rota/Tamame (+40), Capitani/Pupillo (+50) and Bartolini/Serafino (+60), dropping only the +45 match to Sweden’s Robinson/Jacobsson.
On the adjacent court, France booked their place in the semifinals with the same scoreline (3-0) against the Netherlands, winning at +40 (Mannarino/Sanchez), +50 (Henry/Kischekewitz) and +60 (Lagloire/Cayla), and losing only at +45 to Smit/Van Haasteren.
Spain completed the semifinal lineup in style, sweeping Portugal with a commanding 3-0 thanks to wins at +40 (Company/Beracierto), +45 (Limones/Santana) and +50 (Arias/Losada).
In the women’s tournament, the excitement lived up to expectations. Spain, champions of the last three editions, beat Argentina 3-1 thanks to wins from Sainz/Alonso (+40), Silvela/Montes (+50) and Castrillo/Vaquero (+60), dropping only the +45 match to Banchero/Brito.
With an identical scoreline (3-1), the Netherlands beat Sweden with wins from Smolders/Blonk (+40), Moreira/Vreken (+45) and Schuur/Van Wijk (+60), losing only at +50 to Marescotti/Andersson.
Belgium followed the same script and secured their place in the semifinals after beating Brazil 3-1, with wins from Geukens/Vanhyfte (+40), Appelmans/Vande Zande (+50) and Georges/Van Roobayes (+60), letting the +45 point slip against Ferreira/Altmayer.
The big surprise came from the United States, who after losing the first two matches—+45 against Pecastaing/Detriviere and +50 versus Lalanne/Verdier—pulled off a comeback to beat France 3-2. The decisive points were sealed by Petrauskaite/Zubori at +40, Magrini/Teer at +55, and Neugarten/Kaczmarczyk at +60.
The fight for top spot: semifinal matchups
With the quarterfinals decided, the title race moves into the semifinals on September 18 . In the men’s draw, Argentina, the defending champions, will face Italy, while Spain will battle France for a place in the final. In the women’s, Spain, the current three-time champions, will take on the Netherlands, while the United States will do the same against Belgium.
The action will get underway at 9:00 AM local time (2:00 PM in Spain) and will continue in the afternoon from 3:00 PM (8:00 PM in Spain). Via the FIP YouTube channel, you can watch live: Belgium–United States and Spain–Netherlands in the women’s competition; Argentina–Italy and France–Spain in the men’s.
