Slovenia and Bulgaria kicked off their 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship campaigns in style, each claiming straight-set victories in Pool E at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Saturday.
Slovenia 3–0 Chile (25-19, 25-20, 25-16)
The sixth-ranked Slovenians looked sharp in their opener, outclassing Chile with a powerful display at the net. Tonček Štern led with 15 points, while Nik Mujanović, stepping into an outside hitter role, added 12. Middle blocker Jan Kozamernik also reached double digits with 11 points.
For Chile, Vicente Parraguirre scored 12 points, all on attack, while Noé Aravena contributed 11, but the South Americans couldn’t keep pace with Slovenia’s 47 kills and 10 blocks.
Bulgaria 3–0 Germany (40-38, 25-22, 25-20)
Earlier in the day, Bulgaria survived first set to sweep Germany. Aleksandar Nikolov delivered a standout 27-point performance, supported by his younger brother Simeon, who tallied 9 points with an 88% attack success rate.
Germany’s veteran captain Gyorgy Grozer posted 13 points, while middle blockers Anton Brehme (11) and Tobias Krick (10) also shone, but their efforts weren’t enough against Bulgaria’s 53 spike kills and strong teamwork.
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