The red and white giants called up by their respective national teams for the first stage of the 2026 VNL (Volleyball Nations League) are warming up for their first matches. A total of 24 teams will be playing from Wednesday, June 10th to Monday, June 15th, divided into three groups of six teams. Pool 1 will take to the court in Canada, Pool 2 in Brazil, while Pool 3, the only pool without Cucine Lube Civitanova players, will play in China.
The first matches are eagerly awaited. Spiker Alex Nikolov will be playing immediately in Pool 2, where he will face Belgium’s middle blocker Wout D’heer on Wednesday at 6:00 PM Italian time in Brasilia. A thrilling Pool 1 match will take place in Ottawa, kicking off at 10:00 PM Italian time on the same day. France’s spiker Noa Duflos-Rossi will face Italy’s spiker Mattia Bottolo and middle blocker Giovanni Gargiulo. The first exchanges will be at 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 11th, for Canada, led by spiker Eric Loeppky, who will face Germany in their Pool 1 season debut at home.
The season will feature 36 matches between Canada, Brazil, and China. The final match of the season is scheduled for midnight on Monday, June 15th, in Canada. The United States and Italy will be the stars.
Divisione dei raggruppamenti
Pool 1 a Ottawa (CAN): Canada, Germania, Francia, Italia, Stati Uniti, Turchia.
Pool 2 a Brasilia (BRA): Argentina, Belgio, Brasile, Bulgaria, Iran, Serbia.
Pool 3 a Linyi (CHN): Cina, Cuba, Giappone, Polonia, Slovenia, Ucraina.
A seguire il calendario completo della prima tappa con gli orari italiani:
Mercoledì 10 giugno 2026
Ore 7, Cuba – Polonia (Pool 3)
Ore 10.30, Cina – Slovenia (Pool 3)
Ore 14, Ucraina – Giappone (Pool 3)
Ore 17, Turchia – Stati Uniti (Pool 1)
Ore 18, Belgio – Bulgaria (Pool 2)
Ore 21.30, Serbia – Argentina (Pool 2)
Ore 22, Francia – Italia (Pool 1)
Giovedì 11 giugno 2026
Ore 1, Brasile – Iran (Pool 2)
Ore 1.30, Canada – Germania (Pool 1)
Ore 10.30, Cina – Ucraina (Pool 3)
Ore 14, Slovenia, – Polonia (Pool 3)
Ore 21.30, Bulgaria – Iran (Pool 2)
Ore 22, Germania – Italia (Pool 1)
Venerdì 12 giugno 2026
Ore 1, Brasile – Belgio (Pool 2)
Ore 1.30, Canada – Francia (Pool 1)
Ore 10.30, Ucraina – Cuba (Pool 3)
Ore 14, Giappone – Polonia (Pool 3)
Ore 21.30, Belgio – Serbia (Pool 2)
Ore 22, Germania – Stati Uniti (Pool 1)
Sabato 13 giugno 2026
Ore 1, Iran – Argentina (Pool 2)
Ore 1.30, Turchia – Francia (Pool 1)
Ore 10.30, Cina – Giappone (Pool 3)
Ore 14, Cuba – Slovenia (Pool 3)
Ore 16, Brasile – Serbia (Pool 2)
Ore 20.30, Bulgaria – Argentina (Pool 2)
Ore 22, Canada – Stati Uniti (Pool 1)
Domenica 14 giugno 2026
Ore 1.30, Turchia – Italia (Pool 1)
Ore 7, Ucraina – Polonia (Pool 3)
Ore 10.30, Cina – Cuba (Pool 3)
Ore 14, Slovenia – Giappone (Pool 3)
Ore 16, Belgio – Iran (Pool 2)
Ore 17, Germania – Francia (Pool 1)
Ore 19.30, Bulgaria – Serbia (Pool 2)
Ore 20.30, Canada – Turchia (Pool 1)
Ore 23, Brasile – Argentina (Pool 2)
Lunedì 15 giungo 2026
Ore 0.00, Stati Uniti – Italia (Pool 1)
