Alan Nine
Over the last 24 hours, Volleyball.it moved from the end of the men’s Volleyball Nations League Finals into a broader debate about the future shape of the international calendar. The biggest result came from Ningbo, where Poland beat the United States in five sets to lift the trophy again, while Slovenia closed the tournament with bronze. Alongside that final verdict, Volleyball.it also focused on the still-consultative FIVB planning scenario for the seasons from 2028 onward, plus a group of late international notes that included a tribute in Narbonne, new steps for Brazil women and more updates from beach volleyball.
Men's VNL
Poland confirmed its place at the top of the men’s VNL by defeating the United States 3-2 in the final on August 2. Volleyball.it reported the set sequence as 21-25, 25-23, 27-25, 23-25, 15-10, with the Polish side finishing the match with 12 winning blocks, 8 aces and a strong physical presence at the net. Kamil Semeniuk scored 17 points, while Wilfredo Leon and Tomasz Fornal added 15 each. The article also noted that Fornal was named MVP of the 2026 Volleyball Nations League.
The United States pushed the final deep into a fifth set and had major individual numbers of its own. Volleyball.it listed opposite Jake Hanes as the top American scorer with 21 points, while Matthew Anderson contributed 20 and middle blocker Merrick McHenry finished with 14, including seven blocks. Earlier in the day, Slovenia claimed the bronze medal by beating Japan 3-1. Volleyball.it highlighted Nik Mujanovic with 24 points for Slovenia, while Ran Takahashi closed with 20 for Japan.
International Calendar
Volleyball.it also devoted major space to the still-unofficial FIVB calendar model under discussion for the seasons from 2028. According to the article, the working hypothesis would leave roughly nine months for domestic championships but would move major national-team events into December and January. In the outline described by Volleyball.it, club seasons could start between August 20 and September 1, run through the autumn, pause for a men’s world or continental event in mid-November to mid-December, resume through late December and January, then stop again for a women’s world or continental event in January before restarting into the spring. The VNL would follow after the club season.
The article stressed two main pressure points. One is the risk of double stoppages in countries such as Italy, Poland and Turkey, where both the men’s and women’s games carry major commercial and sporting weight. The other is the lack of a real recovery window between the end of a world or continental event, the return of players to their clubs and the restart of national leagues and European cups. Volleyball.it made clear that the plan remains in the consultation phase and that the exact dates, the second competitive window and the possible biennial Club World Championship formula still require official confirmation.
International And Beach Notes
In the late Mondo Volley roundup published on the night of August 1, Volleyball.it reported that Narbonne will permanently retire the number 19 worn by former player and Venezuela captain Willner Rivas, who died with his wife and one-year-old son after the earthquakes that struck the country at the end of June. The club will display his shirt, stage a moment of remembrance and hold an official tribute during its first home match of the season. The same roundup also said that Brazil women will return to work on August 4 ahead of the South American Championship in Rio de Janeiro, with coach Jose Roberto Guimaraes set to welcome back Gabi, Nyeme and Tainara, while Julia Kudiess remains unavailable after knee surgery.
There were also fresh beach-volley notes. Volleyball.it reported that Samuele Cottafava and Gianluca Dal Corso went out in the round of 16 at the Beach Pro Tour Elite16 in Rio de Janeiro after losing in a tie-break to Brazil’s Evandro and Arthur Lanci, and that their next event will be the European Championships in Stare Jablonki from August 12 to 16. In Lorca, Micol Lafuenti and Marta Bozzoli finished fourth at the WEVZA Under 18 event after reaching the semifinals and then losing the bronze-medal match to the Dutch pair Linotte-Vellekoop.
