Italy’s remarkable winning streak stayed alive on Saturday night in Bangkok, as the Olympic champions fought past Brazil in a dramatic five-set battle to book their place in the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship final.
Roared on by 6,000 fans at the Huamark Indoor Stadium, the clash between the top two ranked teams in the world lived up to its billing. Italy prevailed 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 28-30, 25-22, 15-13), stretching their unbeaten run to 35 matches.
Ekaterina Antropova was the star of the night, coming off the bench to replace Paola Egonu in the opening set and delivering a massive 28 points (20 kills, six blocks, two aces). Outside hitter Myriam Sylla added 21 points, while Egonu chipped in 11, returning in the tie-breaker to help seal the win.
For Brazil, captain Gabriela “Gabi” Guimarães topped all scorers with an impressive 29 points (27 kills, two blocks). Rosamaria Montibeller followed with 20, while Diana Alecrim and Júlia Kudiess scored 15 and 14 respectively in a losing effort.
“It was an incredible match, fun to watch and to play,” Antropova said afterwards. “We didn’t always show our best game, but we stayed strong until the end. Brazil pushed us to the limit, but now we need to recover quickly because another final is waiting.”
Italy will now face Türkiye in Sunday’s championship final at 19:30 local time (12:30 GMT). Brazil, meanwhile, will battle Japan for the bronze medal.
The Italians, already Olympic and Nations League champions, now have a chance to add a historic World Championship crown and cement their dominance on the global stage.
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