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Whether it is a sign or merely a coincidence, VakifBank Spor Kulubu's Italian star Paola Egonu will celebrate her 24th birthday on the final day of the Club World Champs which will take place in Antalya from December 14 to 18.

Here are some of the other numbers to look out for at the event.

1991 – Two years after the Men’s Club World Championship was launched in the late 1980s, the first Women’s Club World Championship was held in October 1991 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The eight participating teams included two from Brazil, two from Italy and one each from Japan, Kenya, the United States and Yugoslavia. Hosts Sadia Esporte Club Sao Paulo took the inaugural trophy. The other Brazilian team, Colgate Sao Caetano claimed silver. The bronze went to Croatia’s Mladost Zagreb representing Yugoslavia at the time.

46 – Across the previous 14 editions of the Club World Championship, a total of 46 clubs from 19 different countries and all five continental confederations have participated in the competition.

Türkiye’s Fenerbahce Istanbul against Brazil’s Sollys Osasco in the first women’s Club World Championship final of the 21st century in 2010

Türkiye’s Fenerbahce Istanbul against Brazil’s Sollys Osasco in the first women’s Club World Championship final of the 21st century in 2010

15 – Antalya 2022 will be the 15th edition of the Women’s Club World Championship. The first three tournaments took place in the 1990s. The Club World Championships resumed in 2010 and have been organised annually ever since, with the only interruption in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

14 – Türkiye is the nation that has collected the highest number of Club World Championship medals. Turkish clubs have won a total of 14 medals, including seven gold, two silver and five bronze medals. Brazil have claimed 13 podium finishes including three trophies, seven second and three third places.

MVP Tijana Boskovic of Eczacibasi (first from right) leads the 2016 Club World Championship Dream Team

MVP Tijana Boskovic of Eczacibasi (first from right) leads the 2016 Dream Team

10 – A total of 10 matches, two a day across five days, will be played at the 2022 Club World Championship. The pool stage of the tournament will feature six games (two round robin pools of three teams each). There will be two semifinals, a third place match and a final.

8 – Teams from eight different countries have medalled at the Women's Club World Championships: Azerbaijan, Brazil, China, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, Türkiye and Yugoslavia. Five of these nations (Azerbaijan, Brazil, Italy, Russia and Türkiye) have welcomed home club world champions.

2011 club world champions Rabita Baku of Azerbaijan

2011 club world champions Rabita Baku of Azerbaijan

8 – Eight different countries have hosted the Club World Championships. Qatar and Switzerland welcomed the world’s best women’s club teams three times each. The event was held twice in Brazil and in China, and that group of countries is about to be joined by Türkiye. Italy, the Philippines and Japan have also organised the tournament.

7 – Seven is simultaneously the highest number of appearances and the highest number of medals a single club has accumulated in the history of the Club World Championships. Türkiye’s VakifBank appeared for the first time in 2011 and will participate for the eighth time. Every time they competed at the Club World Championships, they ended up on the podium, collecting a total of four titles (also the highest number for a single club), one silver and two bronzes.

6 – Six teams will compete at the 2022 Club World Championship. The tournaments were played with that number of participants from 1994 through 2015 and then again in 2021. Eight clubs took part in each of the other editions of the Club World Championship.

2 – Only two clubs have managed to win the title more than once. They are four-time champions VakifBank and their city rivals Eczacibasi Dynavit Istanbul, who are the only team with two trophies in their showcase.

2 – Two is the highest number of MVP awards a single player has been able to collect at the Club World Championships. It was done by China’s Zhu Ting, who claimed the honour in 2017 and 2018 as a VakifBank player. Three athletes, who have previously been named MVPs, will compete at the 2022 tournament with a chance to tie Zhu with a second award. They are all Gen Z opposites – Sweden’s Isabelle Haak playing for Italy’s Prosecco Doc Imoco Conegliano, Italy’s Paola Egonu playing for VakifBank and Serbia’s Tijana Boskovic playing for Eczacibasi.

WCWC_Finals_VKF vs IVC_16

MVP-to-be Isabelle Haak spikes for VakifBank in the 2021 final

1 – One team will appear at the Club World Championships for the first time. Kazakhstan’s Kuanysh of Petropavl are the only rookies in the upcoming 2022 edition.