Redazione Volleyball.it
17 March 2026
Italian men’s national team schedule
FIPAV released the 2026 calendar for the men’s world‑champion national team. The squad will gather in Rome on 11 May, then move to Cavalese on 20 May. Friendly matches are scheduled against Turkey in Cavalese (28 May), Belgium in Verona (30 May) and Turkey again in Bergamo (31 May). After the Volleyball Nations League, the Azzurri will host Argentina in Trento on 5 July and play Cuba and Brazil in the BPER Test Match/FIPAV Cup Men Elite in late August.
SuperLega Play‑off Game 3 results
Play‑off Game 3 saw Sir Susa Vim Perugia sweep Vero Volley Monza 3‑0 as Oleh Plotnytskyi and Wassim Ben Tara scored 13 points each. Cucine Lube Civitanova advanced with a 3‑1 away win at Trentino; Aleksandar Nikolov had 25 points. Allianz Milano stayed alive by edging Rana Verona 3‑2 – Ferre Reggers tallied 24 points while Verona’s Noumory Keita delivered 29. Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza defeated Modena 3‑1 to lead their series.
18 March 2026
Conegliano qualifies for the Champions League Final Four
After a 3‑0 win in the first leg, Prosecco Doc Conegliano needed just two sets against Ankara’s Zeren Spor to seal their Final Four place. They won the opening sets 25‑21 and 25‑17; despite dropping the match 2‑3, the early lead ensured a second consecutive Final Four berth. Zhu Ting scored 24 points and Isabelle Haak added 14. Coach Daniele Santarelli cautioned his team not to relax despite a 3‑0 first‑leg win and noted that Conegliano entered the tie on a record 29‑match Champions League winning streak.
Chieri reaches the CEV Cup final
Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri ’76 beat Dresdner SC 3‑2 in Turin to win both semi‑final legs. Chieri dominated the first set 25‑13, dropped the second, and then took a crucial third set 28‑26 before sealing the tie‑break 15‑12. Anett Németh led with 28 points; Stella Nervini added 19 and Anastasia Cekulaev 15. Dresdner’s Marta Kamelija Levinska scored 33 points but couldn’t prevent Chieri’s advance. Chieri will face Galatasaray in the final after the Turkish club swept Voluntari 3‑0 in the other semi‑final.
Vallefoglia claims the Challenge Cup
Megabox Ondulati del Savio Vallefoglia clinched Italy’s 27th CEV Challenge Cup title by sweeping Panathinaikos Athens 3‑0 (25‑20, 27‑25, 25‑16). After edging the first leg 3‑2, the Italian debutants battled back from a 10‑2 deficit in set two, using substitutes Lazaro and Ungureanu to turn the set 27‑25. MVP Erblira Bici scored 23 points and Loveth Omoruyi added 10. League president Mauro Fabris hailed Vallefoglia’s success, noting it maintained an Italian streak of five consecutive Challenge Cup wins.
19 March 2026
Scandicci advances through a golden set
In Istanbul, Savino Del Bene Scandicci lost the return leg to Fenerbahçe 3‑1 but prevailed 15‑13 in the golden set to reach the Champions League Final Four. Fenerbahçe’s Arina Fedorovtseva scored 36 points and Melissa Vargas 30. Scandicci’s Ekaterina Antropova tallied 30 points and Avery Skinner 16; Antropova served seven aces and Skinner’s attacks were pivotal in the deciding set. Coach Marco Gaspari acknowledged Fenerbahçe’s aggressive serving but praised his team’s maturity, stating that they “don’t want to stop here”. Scandicci will play Eczacıbaşı in the semi‑final.
VakifBank ends Milano’s run
Numia Vero Volley Milano fell just shy of the Final Four, losing 3‑2 to VakifBank Istanbul (25‑22, 16‑25, 25‑16, 23‑25, 15‑12). Milano needed a two‑set victory to force a golden set after a 2‑3 first‑leg defeat. VakifBank’s Irina Markova scored 23 points; Milano’s Paola Egonu matched her but committed two critical errors in the tie‑break that sealed the match. Coach Stefano Lavarini said his team played at a high level for much of the match but that small precision errors at key moments cost them a shot at the golden set; he still applauded his players’ competitiveness. VakifBank will face Conegliano in the semi‑finals.
Off‑court drama at Zeren
Serbian outlet Sportklub reported that Brankica Mihajlović and Maja Aleksić left Ankara’s Zeren Spor and returned to Serbia. They were absent from the Conegliano match, and sources attribute their departure to unpaid wages rather than injury. Volleyball.it noted that rumours about payment delays at Zeren have circulated for weeks and that the club has not issued an official response.
