Spain has secured the U18 Men’s Rugby Europe Championship title once more after defeating Georgia in a tense but highly exciting final. Czechia won the bronze medal, pushing the Netherlands to finish 4th, while Portugal finished 5th, with Belgium, Poland and Germany taking the last three places.
Spain retain their crown
Spain has defeated Georgia once more, retaining their champions' crown for another year after a 23-17 win in the competition's final.
Malakai Hafoka was the standout performer of tonight's game, as the fly-half created several brilliant passages of play while also punting 18 of Spain's 25 points. 
Hafoka opened the scoreboard with a long-range penalty at goal, but Georgia got the game's first try when Giorgi Khonelidze found space on the wing, pulling his side ahead. Luka Tchakua slotted the conversion and added a penalty a few minutes later, with the U18 Lelos sailing into the final.
Five minutes to the break, Spain swung back and, in a spectacular way, Hafoka nailed another penalty before Lucas Alvarez Pequeño outpaced the opposition on the wing, giving Spain a 11-10 lead at half-time.
The U18 Los Leones fly-half collected another 3-pointer 8 minutes into the final leg of the tournament, but Georgia pulled ahead again thanks to a brilliant carry from Mate Beruashvili, with the No. 8 managing to reach the whitewash.
But that touch of championship magic, combined with sheer passionate determination, ultimately propelled Spain to victory, with Hafoka converting three more penalty goals to give Spain a 6-point lead with only a few minutes left. Georgia still tried to find a way to victory, but the champions held their own until the final whistle.
For the first time, Spain has retained the crown, marking another successful year for their U18s programme.
Czech masterclass in the bronze final
Czechia has claimed the bronze medal for the first time since joining the U18s Rugby Europe Championship, convincingly beating the Netherlands 45-24.
The first ten minutes belonged entirely to the Netherlands, who used set-piece play to reach the home side’s in-goal area, with Arno van Dijk scoring the opening try after gathering a kick from his own fly-half.
However, the Dutch momentum came crashing down when Jakub Bednar unleashed the full might of his backline, with the fullback setting Martin Bordsky up for the centre's finish. Matouš Borecky followed next, as the fullback found an inch of space in the opposition defence, ran unopposed to the whitewash, and put Czechia ahead.
Despite the Netherlands claiming their second in the aftermath, Czechia kept beating the drum and went into the break leading 33-12 following three more finishes from Augustin Romein, Jakub Bednar and Václav Bartousek.
The hosts' backline tore apart the Dutch defence, which failed to stop them, and the hosts' struggles grew in the second half as Czechia landed two more tries and a conversion.
In the 52nd minute, Marek Fort found space out wide to pierce through and claim his side's 6th, before Niek Schellingerhout gave the Dutch some inspiration by scoring in the middle of the posts. Five minutes to the full-time whistle, the locals put a bow on their win with a try from replacement utility back Václav Raka.
Portugal convincingly beats Belgium
In their final game of the campaign, Portugal put in their best performance, beating Belgium 41-29 to finish 5th.
Despite the final score, Belgium was the first side to take the lead. From a 5-meter lineout, the U18 Diables Noirs set things into motion, and after a few phases, Pieter-Jan D'Haeyer found his way over the whitewash.
Not long after, Diogo Oliveira added Portugal's first points, with the fly-half easily slotting in a penalty kick. With the two sides tightly entangled in a brutal physical contest, fans had to wait until the 26th minute to celebrate a try, as winger Arnaud Masquelier grounded it in the corner after a cunning overhead kick from Melvyn Labaere.
Unfortunately for the Belgian side, Portugal swung back immediately, scoring two tries to take a 17-12 lead at the break. No. 8 Martim Almeida and prop Diogo Ribeiro overpowered the defence at close range, while Oliveira collected only one conversion.
The Portuguese fly-half added another 3-pointer a few minutes into the second half, but Belgium crossed the try line after Edouard Doyen finished a sensational team play. The U18 Lobos' lead would expand twice, with tries from Sebastião Vasconcelos and Manuel Santos. Belgium's only points in this period were a penalty conversion punted by fullback Charles Postel Volonte.
With 8 minutes left on the clock, Belgium added their fifth finish, this time from Remy Roche, who brushed off a few tacklers before hitting the line with a sensational close-range carry. Although hope had returned to the Belgian side, Portugal ultimately put any doubts to rest with a sensational five-minute spell in which Manuel Santos secured his brace, sealing the final score at 41–29.
Poland finish in style
Poland secured 7th place after beating Germany 33-19, opening the last round of the U18 Men's Rugby Europe Championship with a proper, solid contest.
The Poles opened the scoring three minutes into the game with an easy conversion struck by Szymon Wojtkowiak, before they went down to 14 players after Sebastian Habdank-Toczyski was sent to the sin bin.
However, even with the player disadvantage, Wojtkowiak claimed two more for Poland, building a 9-point lead before Germany had the chance to score the game's first try following a pinpoint charge down from no. 8 Aaron Engels.
The U18 Schwarze Adler ramped up their effort from that point, but it amounted to little, as the Polish defence kept the opposition far from their in-goal area going into the break, with Poland leading 9-5.
In the opening 15 minutes of the second half, both sides added a try each, showcasing a highly competitive game in which the two forward packs struggled to gain control of the game board. Habdank-Toczyski claimed Poland's third finish from a driving maul, and Fjord Werner found space out wide to ground the ball, with Henning slotting in the conversion to put them two points up after levelling the score.
However, from then on, Poland controlled the final 15 minutes, showing daunting physicality and scoring two more tries before the final whistle. With the driving maul playing a pivotal role in the closing stages, Poland secured 7th place and qualification for next year’s U18 Rugby Europe Championship.
