Brazil back on winning track after epic battle with Canada

After three consecutive losses in Ljubljana, Brazil finished the men’s Volleyball Nations League week two on a high note, but not before persevering through a record-long saga against Canada in one of the nine VNL matches played on Sunday.

• Watch the Volleyball Nations League 2026 on VBTV

Brazil’s 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 28-26, 22-25, 17-15) victory over Canada, however, was not enough for jumping above the cut-off line for the Finals in the current VNL standings, as the South American team is now just below it, in eighth place on a 5-3 win-loss record and 13 points. Meanwhile, for Canada, it was the fifth tie-breaker lost since the start of the season. They have now collected 8 points, but on a 1-7 win-loss record, they are only 16^th and under a serious threat of facing relegation. Outside hitter Adriano Cavalcante led Brazil with a team-high 17 points, while Canadian opposite Sharone Vernon-Evans (Sho) produced a match-high 19 points.

At the same time in Orleans, in a spectacular game that lasted even longer, Japan delivered a huge comeback from two sets down against Olympic champions France to stay undefeated on top of the standings, on 8-0 and 20. France are in 12^th place on 4-4 and 10.

The United States occupied the second place in the table after a 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 24-26, 25-17) victory over Serbia in Orleans in the last match of the week’s program. They improved to 7-1 and 19, while Serbia are 11^th on 4-4 and 12. American star Matthew Anderson led USA with 14 points, while Serbian outside Lazar Marinovic was the best scorer of the match with 16 points.

Argentina squeezed out the win in the record-breaking first set against Poland in Gliwice, which took 98 rallies to resolve, before the home team turned the match around to a 3-1 (48-50, 26-24, 25-19, 25-20) victory. The defending VNL champions improved to 6-3 and 17 and occupy the third place in the table, while the South Americans are in 15^th on 2-6 and 7. Star outside Wilfredo Leon erupted with a match-high 27 points, including three blocks and two aces, for Poland. His counterpart Manuel Armoa Morel led Argentina’s scorers with 23 points, all in swings.

Reigning world champions Italy interrupted Slovenia’s victorious march of three back-to-back wins in Ljubljana with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-18, 25-20) comeback and climbed back up to sixth place on 5-3 and 16. Slovenia dropped to fourth place on 6-2 and 14. 22-year-old opposite Alessandro Bovolenta nailed four aces to top the match chart with a total of 21 points for the winners. Slovenian outside Rok Mozic put away three aces and a kill block towards a team-high 19 points.

Bulgaria put an end to Ukraine’s remarkable winning streak in Ljubljana this week. In Sunday’s opening match in the Slovenian capital, the southern Europeans celebrated a 3-1 (25-20, 18-25, 25-23, 25-17) victory with a match-high 26 points from 22-year-old outside hitter Aleksandar Nikolov. His counterpart Dmytro Yanchuk was Ukraine’s most prolific scorer with 20 points. Bulgaria rose to eighth place on 5-3 and 14, while their opponents occupy fifth place on 5-3 and 16.

Turkiye ended their week with a hard-fought 3-0 (26-24, 26-24, 25-17) shutout of VNL rookies Belgium and positioned themselves in seventh place on 5-3 and 14. On 3-5 and 9, the Belgians stand 13^th. In a scoring race between the two opposites, Turkiye’s Adis Lagumdzia nailed a match-high 23 points, including three kill blocks, against 22 (including three aces) from his 22-year-old counterpart Ferre Reggers.

In a direct duel, relevant to the race for survival in the league, Iran outlasted Cuba after four sets, 3-1 (25-22, 25-21, 20-25, 30-28), to get the last day in Orleans underway. It was the Asian team’s second win since the start of the competition and it lifted them to 14^th place on 2-6 and 9. Cuba are still chasing their first win and trail bottom of the table, in the relegation spot – 18^th place, on 0-8 and 2. Opposite Ali Hajipour led the winners with 20 points, while Cuban outside hitter Marlon Yant was the best scorer of the game with 23 points.

Finals hosts China registered their fourth defeat in Gliwice and are still stuck in 17^th place on 1-7 and 4. Germany were the team that beat them on Sunday, by 3-1 (25-20, 25-20, 22-25, 25-19), to improve to 10^th place on 4-4 and 12. Opposite Yann Bohme powered the European side with a team-high 19 points, while Wang Bin delivered a match-high 20 points for China.

VNL 2026 schedule and results
VNL 2026 ticket information

Quick links:
Volleyball Nations League
VBTV
Volleyball World Facebook
Volleyball World X
Volleyball World Instagram
Volleyball World YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter