Daily Volleyball News - September 10: Rain disrupts Italy's EuroVolley opener

Italy’s opening match at the Men’s CEV Enel EuroVolley 2026 was repeatedly interrupted by rain in Naples, with the hosts leading Sweden 22-18 in the first set when play was suspended.

Earlier in the day, both Italian pairs made perfect starts at the European Under-22 Beach Volleyball Championships in Madrid.

Men’s EuroVolley

The opening match between Italy and Sweden in Piazza del Plebiscito was delayed after a shower at 20:58 left the court wet at the end of the teams’ warm-up. The surface was covered while Planet Funk entertained the crowd.

The players later returned for another warm-up, but further rain forced the organisers to cover the court for a second time. The match eventually began, only for another shower to halt play with Italy leading 22-18 in the opening set.

The weather disrupted an event attended by a sell-out crowd of 5,932 spectators. Italian President Sergio Mattarella was among those in attendance at the temporary arena built in the heart of Naples for the opening night of the tournament.

Work on the venue began on August 17 and involved approximately 200 people. The two main stands rise to a height of 16 metres, while the arena features around 500 lights, more than 200 special-effects units and approximately 1,000 square metres of printed graphics and branded material.

Before the match, head coach Ferdinando De Giorgi also provided an update on Alessandro Michieletto.

The outside hitter has been following a gradual return-to-play programme and is expected to become available at some stage during the tournament.

De Giorgi confirmed that Michieletto is part of Italy’s 14-player squad and will be used once he is fit enough to return. The coach set no firm date, stressing that the player’s workload would continue to be assessed carefully following his rehabilitation.

De Giorgi also highlighted the growing competitiveness of the men’s game. Seven European nations are currently ranked inside the world’s top ten, while all four semi-finalists at the most recent World Championship were European.

Italy will therefore approach the tournament one match at a time.

After facing Sweden, the world champions will move to Modena for the remainder of their Pool A campaign. They will play Greece on September 12, Slovakia on September 13, the Czech Republic on September 15 and Slovenia on September 17.

Should Italy progress, Turin will host their round-of-16 and quarter-final matches. The semi-finals and medal matches will be played at the Unipol Forum in Assago on September 25 and 26.

Beach Volleyball

Gabriel Marini Da Costa and Matteo Marchesan won three matches without dropping a set, progressing through qualification before making a successful start in Pool D at the European Under-22 Championships.

The Italians defeated Azerbaijan’s Mammadov I./Muhammad A. 21-15, 21-10 and Israel’s Goldshmid Fisher/Gozlan 21-13, 21-16 in qualifying.

They then opened their pool campaign with a 21-16, 21-19 victory over Greece’s Kaliozis/Karykas.

Sofia Bruzzone and Ilaria Nozza were equally convincing in their opening Pool B match, conceding only 15 points in a 21-7, 21-8 win over Azerbaijan’s Alizada/Aliyeva L.

Both Italian pairs will return to action on September 11. Marini Da Costa and Marchesan will face Hungary’s Tari/Niemeier at 10:00, while Bruzzone and Nozza will meet the Czech pairing of Pavelková K./Pavelková A. at 11:40.