The new 2025-2026 men’s Daido Life SV.League season kicked off in Kobe with plenty of excitement as Osaka Bluteon and Suntory Sunbirds Osaka shared victories over two action-packed days.
On Friday, Bluteon thrilled more than nine thousand fans with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 26-24, 25-20) win. Miguel Lopez led the charge with 17 points, supported by Yuji Nishida with 15. Despite the loss, Dmitriy Muserskiy stood out for the Sunbirds, scoring a match-high 27 points.
The defending champions bounced back on Saturday, winning 3-1 (25-15, 25-15, 20-25, 27-25) behind another dominant effort from Muserskiy, who tallied 30 points, including six blocks. Ran Takahashi added 17 points, while Nishida led Bluteon again with 16.
In other matches, Voreas Hokkaido and JTEKT Stings Aichi split their weekend series. Hokkaido opened with a surprise 3-1 win. Day later Aichi responded with a 3-0 sweep.
Nagano Tridents stunned Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers with two four-set victories. In Nagoya, Hiroshima Thunders edged Wolfdogs Nagoya in a five-set thriller before the hosts hit back the next day with a straight-sets win. And in Shizuoka, Tokyo Great Bears took a narrow five-set victory over Toray Arrows, led by Bartosz Kurek’s 28 points. Toray returned the favor Sunday, with Kirill Klets matching that total in a 3-1 win.