In the spring of 2010, the Israeli team played in 2011 European Championship qualifier in Group C along with the sides of Ukraine, United Kingdom and Slovakia. The first two stages, when Israel played Ukraine and Great Britain, finished in second place, with four wins and two losses. Not qualifying directly, the Israelis had to dispute playoff games to define the last spots. On the playoffs, Israel had to face Belarus in two matches. After losing in Minsk on September 4, by 3:2 (19–25, 18–25, 25–18, 27–25, 15–13), a week later, in Ra'anana, Israel came back for a 3:1 win (25–22, 16–25, 25–20, 26–24) in front of 1,500 spectators, giving them the spot for the final round of the 2011 competition, after thirty nine years since they last took part on the finals.