On 1 January 2025, for the second time since joining the European Union in 2004, Poland assumed the six-month presidency of the Council of the EU. This event occurs every 13.5 years for a Member State, which is rare. Moreover, a new institutional cycle was beginning in the EU at the time, with the new European Parliament, following the June 2025 elections, and the new EC under the leadership of President Ursula von der Leyen, already in office for the second time. Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, which had already lasted three years, and Donald Trump's assumption of the presidency – i.e. the threat, uncertainty and geopolitical transformation of the world order – have heightened the expectation of strong leadership.  Additionally, the timing of the Polish presidency overlaps with the ongoing presidential campaign. The aim of this article is to diagnose the state of knowledge about the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, as well as expectations related to it. Does the public experience fears and anxieties, and if so, what are they related to? Can the expectations presented realistically realised during the presidency? What is the knowledge of the EU in Poland, after 20 years of membership? The study was conducted through the Public Opinion Research Centre (CBOS) between 28 November and 8 December 2024 – i.e. before the official announcement of the priorities of the Polish Presidency. The research sample was a 915-person, representative, name-based random sample of adult Polish residents. A mixed-mode procedure was used (56.6% by CAPI, 26.9% by CATI, and 16.5% by CAWI).