The weekend matches will probably be the ones that will challenge the Americans the most, starting with Saturday’s 17:30 local time (20:30 UTC) duel against Japan. The Japanese had strong displays in their first three matches and only dropped their fourth and last encounter in Nagoya to continental rivals China.
The Chinese were also the only ones to overcome Brazil in the opening week of the VNL. The South Americans, who will face the USA on Sunday, at 10:00 local time (13:00 UTC), in Brasilia, recovered from their five-set loss in their first match with three-straight victories and will have the support of their fans this week. The team will also likely have Olympic medallists Thaisa Menezes, Gabriela 'Gabi' Guimarães, Roberta Ratzke and Rosamaria Montibeller all available for selection in Brasilia.
Other exciting encounters set to happen during the second week of the women’s VNL in Brasilia include the duel between Japan and Serbia, on Tuesday, at 21:00 local time (00:00 UTC, Wednesday), the Asian Derby between Japan and Korea, on Thursday, at 17:30 local time (20:30 UTC), the battle between Brazilians and Serbians, on the same day, at 21:00 local time (00:00 UTC, Wednesday), and the match involving Brazil and Germany, on Saturday, at 14:00 local time (17:00 UTC).
**Volleyball Nations League 2023: full schedule and results**
Simultaneously to the Pool 4 action in Brasilia, the national teams of Bulgaria, Canada, China, the Dominican Republic, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Türkiye will be competing in Pool 3, in Hong Kong.
The VNL Preliminary Phase will feature three weeks of competition, with each of the 16 teams playing 12 matches. The eight best-ranked national teams in the Preliminary Phase will qualify for the Final Phase, which will be held in Arlington, the United States, from July 12-16 – host country USA are already guaranteed a spot.
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