Alan Nine
VNL
OTTAWA / PASIG CITY - The national-team agenda remained one of the main themes of the day. On the men’s side, the statistical focus stayed on Italy’s second match in the VNL, with the set-by-set and total box score from the meeting with Germany published from Ottawa. The item kept attention on the match data rather than broad commentary, underlining how closely the opening week is being tracked in Canada.
On the women’s side, Julio Velasco selected the 14-player squad for the second VNL week in the Philippines. Italy will play Czech Republic, Serbia, the United States and Japan in Pasig City, giving the next block of matches a clear competitive frame after the first stage of the summer.
Beach Volley
The beach circuit is also ready to move. The 33rd Italian Absolute Championship will start in Falconara from June 12 to 14, with a schedule built around 88 matches. The structure includes 16 pairs in each main-draw bracket, while the finals will be available in streaming, giving the opening stop immediate national visibility.
The Falconara event gives the domestic beach calendar an early reference point and adds another competitive front to a week already full of indoor national-team and transfer news. The numbers published with the launch confirm a dense opening program and a format designed to keep the first stop active from start to finish.
Italian Transfer News
Cuneo made official the arrival of middle blocker Nicolò Volpe. The Turin-born player, born in 2003, joins the biancoblù roster after his last Serie A2 season with Sviluppo Sud Catania. It is a move that fits the club’s attempt to combine youth and category experience in the middle-blocker department.
There was continuity as well as new signings elsewhere. Yuasa Battery confirmed assistants Minnoni and Romiti in the staff of Ortenzi, keeping both vice coaches alongside the head coach for the next A2 season. Roma Volley welcomed back setter Margherita Muzi, who returns to the giallorossa shirt after an A2 season in Fasano.
Nuvolí AltaFratte Padova added opposite Genevieve Lewis, a 2003-born American player coming from the University of Denver, where she wore number 15 before keeping the same number for the coming season. Altotevere, meanwhile, chose stability by confirming outside hitter Alpini. The San Giustino club’s team MVP stayed in place and will move directly into the new season without interruption.
Among the most visible market moves, Perugia officially announced the arrival of opposite Ferre Reggers (photo). The Belgian player had already stood out in Milano and now joins the bianconero roster with the stated ambition of competing at the highest level, including in the Champions League. Consar Ravenna also added to its plans by signing middle blocker Martin Berger, presented as a young but already experienced player developed in the Trentino Volley system and coming off two A2 seasons.
Italian Clubs
A different kind of club story arrived from Macerata. At the University of Macerata, students from a marketing course presented ideas linked to CBF Balducci HR, with the objective of strengthening attendance, brand identity and the relationship between the club, younger audiences and the university world. It was not a roster update, but it was one of the day’s clearest examples of a club working on audience development beyond the court.
