Osaka to host men's and women's VNL 2026 matches

One of the biggest volleyball hotbeds in Japan, the city of Osaka was confirmed on Friday as the destination of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2026 in the country.

Home to the Suntory Sunbirds in the Japanese Men's SV.League, Asue Arena Osaka will host pools during the third week of the Preliminary Phase, which will have the women playing from July 8-12 and the men competing one week later, from July 15-19.

The announcement was made during a press conference held at the Osaka City Hall, which counted on many local authorities, including Japanese Volleyball Association President Shunichi Kawai, Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura and Osaka Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama, as well as Volleyball World's Business Development Manager Jérémy Bayer.

"On January 28th, we announced that the Volleyball Nations League 2026 would be held in the Kansai region," Volleyball World's Chief Business Officer Guido Betti said in a video message. "Today, I am proud to officially announce that Osaka, a wonderful international city, will be the host city."

This will mark the first time that Osaka welcomes both men's and women's pools in the VNL. The city has hosted men's matches in 2018 and 2022. Chiba, Fukuoka, Nagoya, Tokyo and Toyota have also hosted VNL matches in the past.

The women's event in Osaka will feature some international volleyball heavyweights, with Brazil, Poland, Thailand, Türkiye and the United States making the trip to join hosts Japan.

The men's pool will have Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Cuba and Italy alongside the host country.

Ticket sales for both pools start on March 19.

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