Finland emerged as the only team to complete pool play without a loss at the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship, closing their campaign with a four-set win over Colombia on Tuesday. The fifth and final day of preliminary action brought an end to the group stage across Yunnusobod Hall and the Sport University Center in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
FIVB Boy's U19 World Champ 2025
Finland complete perfect record to lead field into eighthfinals in Tashkent
Pakistan and Bulgaria end winning runs as pool play closes at Boys’ U19 World Championship
Published 06:45, 29 Jul 2025
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Three teams entered the day with unbeaten records, but only Finland held on. Pakistan and Bulgaria were both handed their first defeats, setting the stage for an unpredictable knockout phase beginning Thursday.
Colombia stunned Finland early with a 25-22 win in the first set, putting pressure on the tournament’s last unbeaten squad. But the Finns regrouped behind consistent offense from outside hitters Matias Siika-Aho and Viktor Viljamaa, who helped turn the match around with a 25-21 second set and a dominant 25-15 third frame. Colombia mounted a strong challenge in the fourth with Maicol Isaac Ortiz Castañeda leading the charge, but Finland closed out the match 25-21.
Finland’s 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-15, 25-21) win secured their fifth straight victory and top seed from Pool D. Versanen, who had a late scoring burst, finished with 15 points, equal with Siika-Aho, while Viljamaa added 12. Ortiz led Colombia with 23 points.
“It feels amazing because Finland has never won this many games and we have zero losses. We are making history now and we just keep going. Honestly, I didn’t expect this before the tournament. We came here just to challenge, but now it’s really surprising me,” said Versanen.
“Today Colombia played very well and took the first set, but after that we stopped making mistakes and kept the ball alive. That gave us better chances because they started making the errors instead. Having our families here is a very good thing. They give us so much energy after every point and it really helps us.”
Finland libero Panu Salmijarvi embraces a family member after their fifth win in Pool D.
Elsewhere in Pool D, the United States closed their pool campaign with a 3-1 (25-27, 28-26, 25-22, 25-19) win over Korea to finish with three victories. The Americans dominated the net with a 20-2 blocking edge and outscored their opponents 52-44 in attacks. Grant Lamoreux scored 20 points, while Roman Payne added 14 and matched Lamoreux and William Dryden with five blocks each. Korea captain Im Sehoon stepped up in the loss with 15 points.
Brazil earned their third win with a sweep of Cuba, 3-0 (25-18, 27-25, 25-23). Lucas Righi led the way with 13 points as Brazil played a clean match, committing just 16 errors compared to Cuba’s 32. Alessandro Gonzalez Fuentes scored 20 for Cuba, with Samuel Alejandro Rodriguez Naquid adding 10.
In Pool A, Argentina handed Pakistan its first loss of the tournament with a 3-2 (24-26, 25-18, 25-21, 16-25, 15-11) win, taking advantage of slightly better efficiency in attack, blocks and serves. Mauro Danilo Gay and Federico Javier Debonis led the Argentine offense with 20 and 19 points, respectively. Muhammad Yahya scored 23 for Pakistan, who still topped Pool A with a 4-1 record.
Argentina’s Mauro Danilo Gay attacks against Pakistan during their five-set win in Pool A.
Türkiye ended their campaign with their first victory, sweeping Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-20, 28-26, 25-22). Ata Ünver paced the Turkish side with 13 points, while Berk Senturk and Abdulvahap Han added 12 each. Despite better net defense, Puerto Rico lacked the same attacking and service edge.
Belgium earned their fourth win by beating hosts Kazakhstan 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-18). Jannes Strobbe led with 14 points, followed by Guilhem Hubert and Daan Vermarien with 11 each. Kazakhstan’s Shokhboz Mamayusufov scored nine.
In Pool B, France delivered a statement win over previously unbeaten Bulgaria, sweeping them 3-0 (25-18, 27-25, 25-19) to hand the leaders their first defeat. France led in all statistical categories, including a 6-0 advantage in aces. Andrej Jokanovic scored 11 points, while the French defense held Bulgaria’s top attackers Nikolay Nikolaev and Deyan Marinov to eight points apiece.
France celebrate a point during their straight-sets win over previously unbeaten Bulgaria in Pool B.
Japan secured fourth place in the group with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-18) win against Algeria. Karen Masajedi led with 12 points, supported by Yusei Sakiyama and Sowa Maeda. Japan’s cleaner attack and reduced errors helped close out the match.
China capped their pool stage with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 25-13) win over Canada, dominating in all skills. Ding Haocheng led with 16 points, while Hu Hanlin added 10. Canada’s Tyson Dezutter was the lone standout with 14 points from the attack line.
In Pool C, Poland posted a 3-0 (26-24, 25-17, 25-21) win over Egypt behind a 17-point outing from Maksymilian Lyson and seven blocks from Tymoteusz Lenik. Their strong duo helped limit Egypt’s Ahmed Amer to 12 points.
Poland launch one of their 42 successful attacks in a 3-0 win over Egypt to close Pool C.
Spain bounced back from their loss to Italy with a 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-20) win over Tunisia. Gerard Rejon and Diego Kunda scored 12 and 10 points, respectively, as Spain held Tunisia winless in pool play.
Italy continued their momentum with a 3-1 (25-16, 28-26, 24-26, 25-17) victory over Iran. The European side showed resilience in tight sets and had four players in double digits. Iran’s Mohammad Amin and Amir Naderi scored 19 and 16 but were outpaced by Italy’s team balance and efficient execution.