Sada Cruzeiro look to bounce back against Monte Carmelo in the Superliga

Upset in the second leg of the first round of the 2025-2026 Brazilian Men's Superliga regular season on Monday, reigning world champions Sada Cruzeiro will have an opportunity to get back on track on Sunday, when they play their third match in the tournament.

The defending champions will face in-state rivals Azulim Sicoob Aracoop Monte Carmelo on the road on Sunday, at 18:30 local time (21:30 GMT), in one of the five matches set to take place in the country over the weekend.

• Watch the Brazilian Superliga live on VBTV

After triumphing in the Minas Gerais State Championship and the Brazilian Supercup, Cruzeiro had a solid Superliga debut, beating JF Vôlei in four sets at home. On Monday, however, despite being in front of their supporters again, the world champions were upset by SESI Bauru in the tie-breaker, dropping their first match of the season.

Currently in fourth place in the standings with four points, the team of Olympic champions Wallace de Souza (who had knee surgery this week and will miss some time), Lucas Saatkamp and Douglas Souza will now fight for a road win to get back in the race for first place.

"Despite the upset, we need to keep growing," said head coach Filipe Ferraz. "We don't have much time between matches, and we need to find the adjustments we have to make. Sunday's match will be tough, and there will be some traveling involved, too. It's a long season, and we need to learn from this result."

Their opponents Monte Carmelo are back in the Superliga after winning the country's second division in 2024-2025 and have former Egyptian national team opposite Hisham Ewais as their main addition for the season. They lost their first two matches, to Vôlei Renata Campinas and JF Vôlei, and are in 11th place, with one point.

Cruzeiro have never lost to Monte Carmelo in six Superliga matches, having only dropped two sets in the period. The teams met last month during the Minas Gerais State Championship and the world champions triumphed in the tie-breaker.

Undefeated Praia and Guarulhos also play on Sunday

The third leg of the Superliga regular season will have three matches on Saturday and another one on Sunday. Saturday's schedule has two encounters starting at 18:30 (21:30 GMT) - Viapol Vôlei São José vs. Campinas and Joinville Vôlei vs. Suzano Vôlei - and another one at 21:00 (00:00 GMT, Sunday) - Saneago Goiás vs. JF Vôlei.

Brazilian Men’s Superliga – Match Schedule & Results

On Sunday, two of the three undefeated teams in the Superliga will go against each other, with Vôlei Guarulhos Bateubet hosting Praia Clube at 20:00 (23:00 GMT).

Quick links:
Brazilian Men's Superliga
VBTV
Volleyball World Facebook
Volleyball World X
Volleyball World Instagram
Volleyball World YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter