VNL
The first ever FIVB Volleyball Nations League for women begins tomorrow, on May 15 in Brazil, China, Russia and the United States.
Sixteen teams from across the globe will embark on a new adventure and on Week 1, we will enjoy in 24 matches.
In Pool 1, Russia will host in Ekaterinburg, The Netherlands, Thailand and Argentina (check the schedule of the matches) while in Pool 2 in Ningbo, the Olympic champions will welcome Korea, Belgium and Dominican Republic (check schedule of the matches).
Recall that Belgium and South Korea will open the inaugural women’s FIVB Volleyball Nations League.
Reigning world champions USA begin their quest for glory at home in Lincoln, Nebraska, where they host Poland, Italy and Turkey in Pool 3.
“The thing that has us most excited is playing inside our country,” said USA head coach Karch Kiraly ahead of the tournament. “We don’t get to do that a ton. And what an honor it is to start this newly-named, reformatted and rebranded tournament called Volleyball Nations League here in Nebraska, where women’s collegiate volleyball is supported as fiercely as anywhere else with the attendance records and all the things that University of Nebraska Husker fans do to support their college team. We are hoping they come out and support us, and we are excited to play in a truly fantastic venue.“
In Pool 4 in Barueri, the team of coach José Roberto Guimarães will play against Germany, Japan and Serbia.
“With the Volley Nations League we have the opportunity to play against the best teams in the world and we will see how each team are at this moment in the season. The possibility to play at home in front of our fans opening the competition is very important. We know that the fans will be our 15th player and will support us a lot” said Ze Roberto.
Just to remind you, the 16 teams will compete in a Preliminary Round over five weeks in a total of 20 pools of four teams each. There will be one ranking table across all pools with the top five teams at the end of the Preliminary Round joining the hosts for the Finals. The Chinese city of Nanjing has been selected as the host for the Finals. From June 27 – July 1, all eyes will be on the Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre as six top teams bid to become the inaugural Volleyball Nations League champion.
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