Following last week’s inauguration of the first VNL Legacy Court in the Brazilian capital Brasília, now the suburban areas of the Filipino capital Manila and the Turkish capital Ankara opened VNL Legacy Courts of their own during the week they are hosting women’s Volleyball Nations League pools.
VNL 2026
VNL Legacy Court Journey Continues in Türkiye and the Philippines
The beautiful facilities create favorite spots for volleyball lovers in the two capital areas
Published 08:34, 19 Jun 2026
The VNL Legacy Court in Ankara
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The VNL Legacy Courts in the Philippines and Turkiye will serve as new favorite meeting points for volleyball lovers in the two cities, as masterpieces of art adding to the esthetic beauty of their urban environments, and a dear memory of volleyball’s annual elite international competition visiting these cities and sparking volleyball fever among the local fans.
The VNL Legacy Court program is a new initiative by the FIVB, Volleyball World and the Volleyball Foundation, aimed at bottom-up growth of the sport, promoting community engagement and aiding the grassroots development of volleyball around the world by bringing together the sport’s elite and fundamental base at a beautiful, artistically enhanced location, accessible to everybody.
The program also contributes to improved gender equality and increased empowerment of women and girls through sports and to improved physical, mental and social health of the local population.
The VNL Legacy Court in the Philippines
The VNL Legacy Court in the Philippines was transformed in collaboration with Filipino artist Maya Caran Dang. He is also known as Maya 100 as he has devoted himself to creating 100 works of art on sports courts across the country. The court is located at the Taguig City Community Center in Manila’s metropolitan area, a few kilometers from the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City, currently hosting the VNL matches in Pool 5.
Maya’s masterpiece depicts Filipino volleyball standout Julia de Guzman, as well as a number of top-caliber international stars representing the six countries competing in Pasig City this week – Dominican Republic’s Brenda Castillo, Czechia’s Helena Grozer, USA’s Jordyn Poulter, Japan’s Mayu Ishikawa, Italy’s Paola Egonu and Serbia’s Tijana Boskovic.
“I actually grew up playing volleyball with my siblings on a small community court. Looking back, having a space like that played a huge role in helping me fall in love with the game and gave me the opportunity to learn, play, and dream,” said Julia de Guzman. “That's why this is so meaningful. For me, it's not just about building courts—it's about creating opportunities. When I see the faces of these top global volleyball athletes around the court, I'm reminded that they all started the same way – with a small dream and a big love for volleyball. Sometimes all it takes is one court, one coach or one moment to spark a dream.”
The artwork on the VNL Legacy Court in Ankara was authored by Emir Aktunc, also known as Max on Duty, a street-art muralist, who has worked on various projects in cities across Turkiye and abroad. His design includes images of five inspirational stars of Turkish women’s volleyball - Cansu Ozbay, Gizem Orge, Hande Baladin, Melissa Vargas and Zehra Gunes.
The court was set up at the Batikent recreational area in the northeastern suburbs of Ankara, also a few kilometers from the Ankara Arena, venue of the VNL battles this week.
By combining sports and art in community settings, the initiative supports the FIVB Strategic Vision 2032 and its ambition to reach 1.6 billion people with a grassroots approach by making volleyball available to everyone, everywhere.
