Alan Nine
International
BRASILIA / OTTAWA / TARANTO — The international frame of the day was built around national-team schedules and tournament draws. Italy’s women are ready to open their Volleyball Nations League 2026 campaign in Brasilia, where they are set to face Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Turkey and Brazil in the first week of competition. The complete first-phase calendar keeps the early focus on how the Azzurre will enter one of the most demanding stretches of the international summer.
On the men’s side, Ferdinando De Giorgi selected the 14 players for Italy’s first VNL week in Canada. The squad will gather at the Olympic Preparation Centre before leaving for Ottawa, where Italy is scheduled to meet France, Germany, Turkey and the United States. Another international note came from the draw for the 2026 Mediterranean Games: both Italian teams were placed in Group A for the tournament that will be played at the PalaMazzola from August 24 to September 1.
Italian Transfer News
BUSTO ARSIZIO / PADOVA / ROME — The busiest domestic transfer stories came from the women’s game. Futura Volley Giovani added a high-profile outside hitter by bringing in Emma Cagnin from Numia Vero Volley Milano, one of the clearest signals yet of the club’s ambitions in Serie A2. Later in the day, Nuvolì AltaFratte Padova strengthened its setting department with the arrival of 2006-born setter Rebecca Mirarchi, who will work alongside the confirmed Martina Stocco in the 2026/27 A2 women’s season.
Another important confirmation came from the capital, where Ferraro SMI Roma Volley kept opposite Nikoleta Perović. The renewal carries both continuity value and the weight of the player’s last season: Perović finished as the top scorer in Serie A2 2025/26 with 556 points, and will remain with the Wolves for the next campaign.
Italian Leagues
TARANTO — Taranto remained at the center of one of the day’s most sensitive league stories. Prisma Taranto stepping away from the next Serie A2 Credem Banca season reopened the question of who could benefit from a possible repechage. Names already circulating around that scenario include Siena, Castellana Grotte, Cantù and Belluno.
The same club then reappeared in a more political and local institutional dispute. Prisma’s renunciation triggered a direct exchange between the club and the municipal administration over the availability of the PalaMazzola. The picture is one of a withdrawal that is no longer only a market or registration issue, but also part of a wider public confrontation about the conditions needed to sustain high-level volleyball in the city.
Foreign Transfer News
The foreign market section widened the lens beyond Italy, with movement reported across France, Poland, Brazil, Japan and Turkey ahead of the 2026/27 season.
Youth
OZZANO DELL'EMILIA — The day also produced a title result in the youth sector. Autopancotti Vero Volley Monza won the 33rd Del Monte Junior League by defeating Itas Trentino 3-1 in the final. The closing focus stayed on Monza’s victory and on the individual recognition for Diego Frascio, named MVP of the event. After the semifinal stories that had defined the previous stage, the final result completed the tournament’s picture and gave the youth section one of the day’s clearest sporting headlines.
