Alan Nine
The race to succeed Mauro Fabris as president of the Italian Women’s Volleyball League is taking shape, with Massimo Beduschi and Vito Cozzoli emerging as the two candidates. Elsewhere, Italy’s latest EuroVolley victory attracted a strong television audience, while Brazil named their squad for the South American Championship.
Italian Women’s Volleyball
MILAN — The race to become the next president of the Italian Women’s Volleyball League is taking shape, with Massimo Beduschi and Vito Cozzoli set to contest the election on September 29.
The vote will bring Mauro Fabris’s 20-year presidency to an end.
Cozzoli has said that leading figures within the women’s game encouraged him to stand and that the decision was not simply a personal initiative.
His candidacy is supported by a group that includes Alessandra Marzari of Milano, Mignemi of Roma, Angeli of Vallefoglia and Condina of Offanengo. Milano, led by Marzari, are understood to be among his strongest supporters.
Beduschi, meanwhile, has secured the backing of several prominent clubs in Italian women’s volleyball. Scandicci, Conegliano, Bergamo, Firenze and Novara are among the Serie A1 clubs supporting his candidacy, with Trento also part of the group from Serie A2.
Financial policy is expected to play a central role in the campaign. Beduschi’s programme is reported to address taxation, staffing costs, club sustainability, tax credits and other measures designed to ease the financial pressure on teams.
He also brings extensive experience in communications and media through his roles as Italy chairman and chief executive of WPP Media, as well as Italy chairman of WPP.
Cozzoli’s experience includes his previous senior role at Sport e Salute.
The election will therefore offer clubs a choice between two candidates with markedly different professional backgrounds as the league prepares for its first change of president in two decades.
Men’s EuroVolley
Italy’s 3-1 victory over Slovakia attracted an average audience of 1.88 million viewers on Rai 2, representing a 12.3% share and a total reach of six million.
It was the most-watched programme of the day on the channel, while a further 153,000 viewers watched the match on Sky Sport.
The victory was Italy’s third in succession at the 2026 Men’s EuroVolley and secured their place in the round of 16. The match was also available on DAZN, NOW, EuroVolley.tv and RaiNews.it.
Francesco Sani, competing at his first senior European Championship, described his role as being ready to make an impact from the service line in high-pressure situations.
Sani said head coach Ferdinando De Giorgi often introduces him when the score is tight, making mental preparation particularly important.
The outside hitter added that Italy must remain fully focused despite having already secured qualification, with pool matches against the Czech Republic and Slovenia still to come.
He also stressed that the team were not yet thinking about the knockout rounds in Turin or the final stage in Milan.
International
Brazil head coach Bernardinho has selected a 14-player squad for the South American Championship.
Brazil will begin their campaign against Chile on Tuesday, September 15 at 20:00, with the continental title and direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games at stake.
The squad includes setters Cachopa and Brasília; opposites Darlan and Bryan; outside hitters Lucarelli, Adriano, Honorato, Arthur Bento and Lukas Bergmann; middle blockers Flávio, Judson and Pinta; and liberos Maique and Pureza.
