The United States won the 2026 FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U17 World Championship after sweeping Türkiye in the title match in Santiago. USA earned a 3-0 (25-23, 25-11, 25-23) victory at National Stadium Park to take gold, with Türkiye finishing as runners-up and China claiming bronze.
The Americans faced strong resistance in the opening and third sets, but dominated the second and delivered the more consistent performance overall. USA finished with 45 attacking kills, 12 blocks and nine aces, compared with Türkiye’s 24 kills, eight blocks and four aces.
Kari Knotts led the scoring with 23 points. The 15-year-old opposite also delivered four aces and two blocks, while Maya Ogbogu added 18 points for the champions. Cagla Caglayandere and Zeynep Doga Alpay were Türkiye’s leading scorers with 10 points each.
China, meanwhile, secured third place after recovering from an opening-set defeat to beat Chinese Taipei 3-1 (26-28, 25-15, 25-19, 25-22). The Chinese side served 13 aces, with Chen Ruihan and Zhang Yijia scoring 16 points each and Ren Sichen adding 15. Chinese Taipei were led by Chang Yun-Chen and Chen Ting-Yi, who both finished with 19 points.
China’s bronze followed their championship triumph at the inaugural edition in 2024, while Chinese Taipei placed fourth for the second tournament in a row.
Italy defeated Korea in four sets to finish fifth, and Thailand swept Croatia in the seventh-place match.
Results
Final: USA 3-0 Türkiye (25-23, 25-11, 25-23)
Third place: China 3-1 Chinese Taipei (26-28, 25-15, 25-19, 25-22)
Fifth place: Italy 3-1 Korea (25-20, 24-26, 25-20, 25-14)
Seventh place: Thailand 3-0 Croatia (25-21, 25-10, 26-24)
Final podium: USA (gold), Türkiye (silver), China (bronze)
