Who is Derya Cebecioğlu, and which team does she play for?

Derya Cebecioğlu has drawn renewed attention after winning the gold medal with Turkey at the 2026 European Women’s Volleyball Championship. She also received the tournament’s Best Spiker award.

Born in Mersin on October 24, 2000, Cebecioğlu joined VakıfBank’s youth system when she was 14. She represented VakıfBank youth teams and Turkey’s junior national teams, collecting success at both domestic and international level.

She was named the best spiker at the 2018 U20 European Championship and the tournament’s top scorer at the 2019 U20 World Championship. In 2018, she moved into VakıfBank’s senior team. That year, the club won the 2018-19 Sultanlar League and the 2018 FIVB Club World Championship, while finishing third in the 2018-19 CEV Women’s Champions League. She also began appearing for Turkey’s women’s national team.

Cebecioğlu later joined Yeşilyurt on loan and helped the club win the 2021 CEV Challenge Cup. She returned to VakıfBank for the 2021-22 season and won the 2021 FIVB Women’s Club World Championship with the team.

Her listed club career includes VakıfBank II from 2014 to 2017, Bahçelievler Volleyball Club from 2017 to 2018, VakıfBank from 2018 to 2019, Yeşilyurt from 2019 to 2021, and VakıfBank again from 2021 to 2023 and 2024 to 2026. She also played for Japan’s Kurobe AquaFairies in the first half of the 2023-24 season. Since 2026, she has played for Türk Hava Yolları.