On this day..
Eurovolley 2026, Amarcord and volleyball birthdays, Los Angeles 2028, Brazil and Cuba and Africa
Welcome to the 91th episode of VolleyBar!
Thanks to the European Championship, we’ve gained a significant number of new readers. So, even though we’ve already reached Episode 91 today, after A WELL-DESERVED weekend break, let’s remember that VolleyBar is the first-ever daily column created to bring the day’s main volleyball news together in one place.
You’ll find our idea being brutally copied by a particular Italian website. But it remains nothing more than a poor imitation—and most of the news they publish comes from us, including more recent news about France and European Championship.
Obviously, do you think they cited their sources? Of course not. It’s easier to translate the news into Italian or simply copy it directly.
In Sofia, Romania pulls off a massive upset stunning Ukraine in a straight-sets sweep to officially advance to the Quarterfinals of the Men’s European Volleyball Championship: 25:22, 25:21, 30:28 together with France, who also books its spot in the Top 8! The French squad swept Portugal in straight sets in the Round of 16 to advance to the Quarterfinals: 25:21, 25:22, 25:22.
Meanwhile, in Turin, for the first time since 2013, Finland is returning to the Quarterfinals!
The Finnish squad also secured their spot in the Final 8 after surviving an absolute five-set thriller against Greece: 22:25, 25:16, 22:25, 25:23, 15:13.
Italy defends home court in Torino and completely shuts down Denmark in a dominant straight-sets sweep to punch their ticket to the EuroVolley Quarterfinals: 25:22, 25:16, 25:11.
Recall that you can read all EuroVolley news directly here, while calendar with all games, results and gallery updated every day is here.
Either way, on September 21, 2014, Poland defeated Brazil 3–1 in the final of the FIVB Men’s World Championship, played in front of a home crowd in Katowice.
The victory gave Poland their second consecutive world title, repeating their success from 1974 and ending Brazil’s reign after three successive World Championship victories in 2002, 2006 and 2010. It was also a repeat of the 2014 World Championship final, with Poland once again overcoming the reigning Olympic champions.
The result was particularly significant because Poland became the first team since Brazil in 2006 to successfully defend the men’s world title!

On September 21, 2023 Brazilian Olympic champion Walewska Oliveira died at the age of 43.
A key member of Brazil’s golden generation, she won Olympic bronze in Sydney in 2000 and Olympic gold in Athens in 2004. She also collected silver at the 2008 Beijing Games.
Her death was reported on September 21, 2023, and widely covered by Brazilian and international media. Some sources published the news on September 22, but the date of death is recorded as September 21.

On September 21, 2025 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, the United States team of Miles Partain and Andrew Benesh won the men’s gold medal at the NORCECA Beach World Championship Qualifying Tournament.
They defeated Puerto Rico’s Cristian Encarnación and Diego Rosich 2–0 (21:13, 21:17).
In the women’s final, Canada’s Marie-Alex Bélanger and Lea Monkhouse defeated Puerto Rico’s María González and Allanis Navas 2–1 (14:21, 21:17, 16:14). Both finals were played on the sand courts at Los Corales Beach.
In 1999, the tenth edition of the Asian Women’s Volleyball Championship began in Hong Kong on September 21.
China eventually won the tournament, claiming their eighth Asian title, ahead of South Korea. Japan finished third, while Thailand placed fourth. The competition also served as part of the qualification pathway for the 1999 World Cup and the 2000 Olympic qualifying process. 
Iranian middle blocker Ali Shafiei was born on September 21, 1991, in Amol.
He represented Iran at international level and played for several clubs in Iran, as well as Stade Poitevin Poitiers in France. Shafiei made his international debut against France during the 2018 Volleyball Nations League period.
Back to the present, in the weekend, two teams secured Olympic ticket: Brazil is officially heading to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics! They clinched their spot on the global stage after defeating defending champions Argentina in a thrilling straight-sets final to claim the Men’s South American Volleyball Championship: 25:20, 25:23, 25:20.
2026 Men’s South American Volleyball Championship Dream Team:
• Most Valuable Player: Ricardo Lucarelli (Brazil)
• Best Outside hitters: Adriano Xavier (Brazil) & Noé Aravena (Chile)
• Best Middle Blockers: Flávio Gualberto (Brazil) & Agustín Loser (Argentina)
• Best Opposite: Darlan Souza (Brazil)
• Best Libero: Franco Massimino (Argentina)
• Best Setter: Fernando Kreling (Brazil)
Argentina has officially qualified for the 2027 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Cup after advancing to the final of the South American Men’s Volleyball Championship, and Chile too after finishing third place in the South American Men’s Volleyball Championship!
Also Cuba is officially heading to Los Angeles!
After missing the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Games, the Cuban squad is returning to the Olympic stage for the first time since Rio 2016.
Cuba defeated host nation Canada in four intense sets, 25:21, 25:23, 23:25, 25:22, to clinch the coveted LA 2028 Olympic berth.
This will mark Cuba’s eighth Olympic appearance in men’s volleyball, with their last appearance coming at Rio 2016.
In Africa, CAVB Men’s African Nations Championship 2026 Quarterfinals are set, and all games are scheduled today.
🇳🇬 Nigeria vs Morocco 🇲🇦
🇹🇳 Tunisia vs Rwanda 🇷🇼
🇨🇲 Cameroon vs Ghana 🇬🇭
🇪🇬 Egypt vs Algeria 🇩🇿
Who will advance to the Final Four?
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