Playing in front of a raucous capacity crowd in the Stožice arena, Slovenia narrowly won the first set 25:23 but lost a hard-fought second set before rebounding to wrap up the game after more than two hours of play.

The win takes them to the final in Paris, where they will attempt to improve on the biggest success Slovenian volleyball has ever recorded, silver medal in 2015.

The Slovenians will play either hosts France or Serbia, whose semifinal encounter is scheduled for Friday.