The Volleyball Men’s World Championship delivered a raft of surprises in Manila with the Philippines, Finland and Belgium, leading the way.
The Philippines gave their fans something to cheer about with a hard-fought 3-1 (29-27, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21) victory over Egypt on Tuesday in front of a packed SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The African champions needed a win against Alas Pilipinas to qualify for the Round of 16 after stunning Iran by 3-1 in their Pool A opener last Sunday. However, they struggled against Angiolino Frigoni’s squad who made the most of their vociferous home crowd to secure a historic first win at the World Championship.
“I’m speechless about this game. This is real history for us…This win is really crazy. It was a great game especially because this is out first time in the World Championship.
“From the start of the first set, I could already feel the support of the crowd, always there to support us even though we are the underdogs. They still support us, they didn’t forget about us. All we could think of was to play together so we could show to all Filipino fans that this team has potential and we are moving in the right direction,” said The Philippines captain Bryan Bagunas, who returned a match-high 25 points (23 kills and 2 blocks).
Veteran Italian coach Frigoni leads The Philippines, having been appointed in 2024 through the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme. Frigoni’s appointment in 2024 is part of a broader strategy supported by the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme.
The Philippines’ win threw Pool A wide open as Iran had earlier rallied from a set down to beat Tunisia 3-1 (23-25, 25-20, 25-23, 25-16) and rekindle their hopes of qualifying for the Round of 16.
All the four teams in Pool A have three points drawn from a 1-1 win-loss ratio heading to their last pool play matches set for Thursday when Egypt will take on Tunisia in an African derby while Iran face off with the Philippines.
The top two teams in each pool qualify for the Round of 16 which will start on Saturday as the competition continues in single elimination format through the eighthfinals, quarterfinals, semifinals and the final to determine who will eventually be crowned world champion.
Finland produced the second surprise of the day after defeating back-to-back Olympic champions France by 3-2 (25-19, 17-25, 29-27, 21-25, 15-9) at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
“Of course I’m proud of the guys. It was not an easy task but the guys believed that we can do it and that was the key that we have the confidence to go and challenge the two-time olympic champions,” said Finland head coach Olli Kunnari.
The 2025 European Golden League champions, who had lost 3-2 to Argentina in their Pool C opener last Sunday, now have a realistic chance of qualifying for the Round of 16 ahead of their crucial encounter against winless Korea on Thursday.
“Like every other match, it’s super important for us and of course there is gonna be a little bit pressure. We are going to be 100% prepared and hopefully we will qualify from the group,” Kunnari reflected on the Korea match.
Finland’s renewed direction has been guided by the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment programme, which began supporting the men’s national team in 2023 and remains ongoing. The support have strengthened Finland’s technical foundations under head coach Kunnari, himself a past star player for the national team.
Argentina continued their winning ways on Tuesday with a 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 25-18) victory over Korea to boost their chances of qualifying for the Round of 16. They take on France on Thursday who have one win; the 3-0 thrashing of Korea last Sunday.
Another Volleyball Empowerment team Belgium, emerged on the right end of a five-set thriller (25-23, 25-20, 22-25, 21-25, 15-13) with the defending champions Italy at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday.
It was the second win for Belgium, who had opened their Pool F campaign with a straight sets victory over Ukraine last Sunday. The Red Dragons will complete their pool play against Algeria on Thursday.
Since 2019, Belgium has benefited from the FIVB Empowerment Programme with Italian coach Emanuele Zanini taking over the men’s national team in 2022.
“It’s a crazy feeling because we played an amazing game. Everything we did was really close to perfection. We showed that we are a really good team, a young team with a big fighting spirit. It’s an amazing feeling to beat these guys that are for me, still favourites to win the world title,” said Belgium’s star opposite Ferre Reggers, who emerged top scorer with 31 points (27 kills, 2 blocks, 2 aces).
Ukraine recovered from their 3-0 loss to Belgium last Sunday to overcome Algeria in straight sets (25-17, 25-12, 25-11) and remain in contention for a Round of 16 slot. They will face the defending champions Italy on Thursday in a match that could shape the final Pool F rankings.
Three-time world champions Brazil punched an early ticket to the Round of 16 with a comfortable 3-0 (25-11, 25-22, 25-18) win over Czechia. The South Americans, who had defeated China by 3-1 in their opening match last Sunday, now sit top of Pool H unbeaten ahead of their encounter with Serbia on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Serbia bounced back from their disappointing 3-0 defeat to Czechia in their Pool H opener last Sunday to cruise past China in straight sets (25-18, 25-19, 29-27) on Tuesday. Serbia will now face leaders Brazil on Thursday while Czechia battle China with a Round of 16 slot up for grabs.
