Alan Nine
Volleyball.it closed the June 29 news cycle with a mix of national-team results, federation business and transfer-market movement. The day’s strongest editorial threads came from the Men's Under 22 European Championship, the conclusion of the FIPAV States General in Catania, an updated picture of the men’s Volleyball Nations League, and three relevant club decisions in the Italian market.
International
Italy opened the pool stage of the Men's Under 22 European Championship with a 3-0 win over Bulgaria, taking the match 28-26, 25-22, 25-20. Volleyball.it reported that the team coached by Vincenzo Fanizza had to recover from early pressure in the first set, when Bulgaria led 10-6 and 17-13, before pulling level at 20-20 and closing the set in extra points through the final contributions of Mati.
In the opening match, Frascio finished as Italy’s top scorer with 16 points, followed by Zlatanov with 13 and Mati with 11. Volleyball.it added that Italy then controlled the second set well enough to move 2-0 ahead and created its decisive break in the third, stretching to 20-13 with an ace from Zlatanov. The next fixtures are already set: Italy will face the Czech Republic on June 30 at 16:00 Italian time and France on July 1 at 21:30.
Italian Volleyball
In Catania, the final session of the States General of Italian Volleyball ended with the closing remarks of FIPAV president Giuseppe Manfredi. Volleyball.it reported that the session focused on the role of the federation’s regional and territorial committees, presented by vice president Massimo Sala and developed by Stefano Camporese, with emphasis on planning, promotion, training and coordination with the central federation bodies.
The discussion also highlighted the value of constant monitoring of the local territory, membership trends, championship registrations and committee finances as practical tools to support clubs. In his closing intervention, Manfredi thanked participants for what he described as two days of real discussion and said the ideas and observations collected would be valuable for the federation’s future. Volleyball.it also noted his broader point that FIPAV has grown not only in results and numbers, but also in the quality of its leadership structure.
VNL Men
Volleyball.it also updated the full men’s VNL first-phase calendar after the end of week two. The site placed Italy sixth in the round-robin standings with 5 wins and 16 points from 8 matches, behind Japan, the United States, Poland, Slovenia and Ukraine. The article listed Japan first on 20 points, while Italy remained in the cluster of teams still fighting for a Finals place.
The third week will send Italy to Osaka in Pool 9. According to Volleyball.it, the Azzurri are scheduled to play Japan on July 15, Belgium on July 16, Argentina on July 18 and Cuba on July 19. The same article also confirmed that the finals are set for Ningbo Beilun, China, with quarterfinals on July 29 and 30, semifinals on August 1 and the medal matches on August 2.
Italian Transfer News
The domestic market produced three of the day’s clearest club stories. Cucine Lube Civitanova made official the signing of Czech middle blocker Antonin Klimes, a 2005-born player standing 208 centimeters tall. Volleyball.it reported that Klimes signed a three-year contract after winning the Czech Extraliga in 2025-26 with VK CEZ Karlovarsko, where he also reached the Czech Cup final.
Tinet Prata added Russian opposite Kirill Klets as its second international signing. The 28-year-old arrives after a season in Japan with the Toray Arrows Shizuoka, where Volleyball.it credited him with 635 points. The article also recalled his previous clubs in Russia, Germany and Japan, plus his three senior appearances for the Russian national team and his debut in the Volleyball Nations League in 2019.
In the women’s game, Numia Vero Volley Milano confirmed head coach Stefano Lavarini for a third consecutive season. Volleyball.it linked the decision to the continuity of the project and to the club’s recent growth, including the Supercoppa Fineco 2025, described as the first national trophy in the history of the consortium’s women’s team. After the European Championship in August, where he will coach Poland, Lavarini will return to Milan to prepare the new season.
