Set to represent Brazil at the upcoming 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s Club World Championship alongside Vôlei Renata Campinas, Cruzeiro and Praia are fighting week after week for the top spot in the standings. After the fifth leg, the reigning world champions appear in first place with 17 points (five wins, two losses), but have one more match played than their rivals, who accumulated 16 points with their six victories.
Praia continued undefeated and in control of their fate thanks to a hard-fought, five-set (24-26, 25-22, 20-25, 25-22, 15-6) victory earned in Bauru. Outside hitter Paulo Vinicios Silva scored 18 points (17 kills, one block) and received the MVP award. Former Brazilian national team middle blocker Isac Santos added 15, with 11 kills, three blocks and one ace.
“Winning this match makes me really, really happy,” Paulo said. “It was a tough match, and their team blocked very well. I’m glad we managed to finish strong because it was very demanding, and I had cramps in the final points.”
Cruzeiro moved into the top of the standings on Sunday, when they topped Saneago Goiás Vôlei 3-1 (27-25, 19-25, 30-28, 25-21) on the road. Opposite Welinton Oppenkoski topped all scorers with 23 points (all in kills), while Olympic champion middle blocker Lucas Saatkamp scored 17 (11 kills, five blocks, one ace) and took home the MVP award.
“We won, but we’re still having too many ups and downs,” Lucas reflected. “The first two sets weren’t good, and we made too many errors. We are a team that pushes from the service line, so we need to be more effective in transition for our system to work. We need to keep working to get better for the end of the first round of the Superliga and the Club World Championship.”
