Women's World Championship 2025

Thailand and Vietnam produce spectacular five-set clashes on eve of World Champs

The two teams trade victories to top SEA V League tournaments’ standings

Published 02:04, 13 Aug 2025

Thailand against Vietnam in a SEA V League final in Nakhon Ratchasima (source: asianvolleyball.net)

Just days ahead of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship, two of the participating teams – Thailand and Vietnam – met head to head twice in fiery 2025 Women’s Southeast Asian Volleyball League (SEA V League) clashes, trading five-set victories to the delight of the home fans in Nakhon Ratchasima and in Ninh Binh.

The 2025 SEA V League was a four-team competition, composed of two separate single round-robin tournaments. In each of the two tournaments, Thailand and Vietnam started off with defeating the other two participating teams – the Philippines and Indonesia – and setting up the face-to-face clash with one another on the last competition day as the de facto gold medal final. In each tournament, the Philippines beat Indonesia for the third place.

The first tournament was held in Nakhon Ratchasima, one of the World Championship cities. In the deciding match, hosts Thailand managed a hard-fought 3-2 (23-25, 25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 15-11) victory to claim the trophy.

The Thai team celebrates a point against Vietnam (source: asianvolleyball.net)

Thailand’s 27-year-old opposite Pimpichaya Kokram earned the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. The Dream Team was composed of setter Pornpun Guedpard (Thailand), opposite Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen (Vietnam), outside hitters Angel Anne Canino (Philippines) and Ajcharaporn Kongyot (Thailand), middle blockers Thatdao Nuekjang (Thailand) and Tran Thi Bich Thuy (Vietnam), and libero Nguyen Khanh Dang (Vietnam).

Vietnam hosted the second tournament in Ninh Binh. Another spectacular battle unfolded in the deciding game. The home team came back from two sets down and, in the overtime of the tie-breaker, they emerged victorious with a glorious 3-2 (17-25, 24-26, 25-17, 25-22, 16-14) victory over Thailand, clinching gold for the first time in the history of the SEA V League.

The Vietnamese team celebrates a point against Thailand (source: asianvolleyball.net)

This time, Vietnam’s 25-year-old opposite Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen was chosen as the tournament’s MVP and selected on the Dream Team, along with setter Pornpun Guedpard (Thailand), outside hitters Chatchu-On Moksri (Thailand) and Vi Thi Nhu Quynh (Vietnam), middle blockers Tran Thi Bich Thuy (Vietnam) and Wimonrat Thanapan (Thailand), and libero Ylizyeth Justine Jazareno (Philippines).

Thailand is set to host the 2025 World Championship from August 25 to September 7. This year’s most prestigious volleyball event will be co-hosted by the cities of Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Nakhon Ratchasima and Phuket. The home team will start off in Pool A in Bangkok, competing against the teams of Egypt, Sweden and the Netherlands. Vietnam will travel to Phuket for their Pool D games against Poland, Germany and Kenya.

FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship 2025: full match schedule