VNL 2026: Brazil inflicted Serbia first defeat! USA, Bulgaria and Italy ok

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After the victories of Japan in the Asian derby and Slovenia over Cuba, 2026 FIVB Volleyball Nations League continued today also in Canada and Brazil.

In Ottawa, Cole Hartke, the 20-year-old opposite of the United States, led his team with a total of 33 points towards a desperate comeback from two sets down in the North American clash with Canada.
Hosts Canada started well in front of the over home 5,700 fans, won the first set and also an epic second set to double their lead, before USA took control and mastered a 3-2 (20:25, 33:35, 26:24, 25:21, 15:11) reverse sweep to stay unbeaten in the competition, taking second place in the current VNL standings at the end of the day, on a 3-0 win-loss record and 8 points.
The comeback actually started in the second set, when coach Karch Kiraly’s team came back from an eight-point Canadian advantage and, although they lost the set, they began to start the battle.
In his first match as a starter, young Cole Hartke led the charge adding six blocks and three aces, well supported by middle blocker Merrick McHenry, who added 15-point, while outside hitters Jordan Ewert and Ethan Champlin contributed with 14 and 12 points, also respectively.
For Canada, opposite Xander Ketrzynski was the most prolific player with 21 points to his name, well supported by outsides Eric Loeppky and Stephen Maar with 16 each, and middle blockers Jackson Howe with 13 and Danny Demyanenko with 12. The last two powered Canada’s net defense with 9 of the team’s 14 winning blocks in the game.

In the last match of the day, reigning world champions Italy celebrated a 0-3 (27:29, 14:25, 20:25) sweep to Turkiye also in Ottawa. Outside Francesco Sani led the winners with a match-high 15 points, including four blocks, while opposite Adis Lagumdzija tallied a team-high nine points for Turkiye.

Meanwhile, in a much anticipated clash between two undefeated teams since the start of the competition, merciless Brazil hammered out a solid shutout of Serbia in front of an enthusiastic home crowd of about seven thousand volleyball fans in their capital Brasilia.
Brazil were well in control of the match for the most part of the first set against Serbia and through the entire second and third sets on the way to a 3-0 (25:22, 25:18, 25:22) sweep of their third match on home ground this week, handing Serbia their first defeat in the competition. The South Americans improved to a 3-0 win-loss record and 9 points to stay in the first place in the standings, led by middle blocker Judson Nunes, top scorer of the match with 13 points to his name through 89% in attack, four blocks and an ace. Opposite Darlan Souza and outside hitter Douglas Souza added 10 points each, while 19-year-old outside Nikola Brboric was Serbia’s only player to reach the double digits with 11 points.

On the same Pool, Argentina started well in their game against World Championship silver medalists Bulgaria also in Brasilia, taking the first set, but the Europeans won the next three to celebrate a well-deserved 3-1 (23:25, 25:23, 25:15, 25:23) victory, their second in a row, left the South Americans pointless in the relegation spot. Bulgaria’s 22-year-old outside Aleksandar Nikolov once again led the charge with a match-high 26 points to sit also to the top of the best scorers ranking in the league with a total of 75 points in three matches. Against Argentina, he boasted a 56% in attack, adding also one ace and one block.
His counterpart Luciano Vicentin was Argentina’s most prolific scorer with 16 points to his name.

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🏐| FIVB Volleyball Nations League 2026 | Games of the day

— Saturday | June 13, 2026 —

| Pool 3 – Week 1 – Linyi 🇨🇳
• 16.30 (Local Time) | China – Japan 1-3 (23:25, 22:25, 25:20, 21:25)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | Cuba – Slovenia 2-3 (15:25, 28:26, 25:19, 14:25, 11:15)

👉🏼 Pool 2 – Week 1 – Brasilia 🇧🇷
• 11.00 (Local Time) | Brazil – Serbia 3-0 (25:22, 25:18, 25:22)
• 15.30 (Local Time) | Bulgaria – Argentina 3-1 (23:25, 25:23, 25:15, 25:23)

👉🏼 Pool 1 – Week 1 – Ottawa 🇨🇦
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Canada – USA 2-3 (25:20, 35:33, 24:26, 21:25, 11:15)
• 19.30 (Local Time) | Türkiye – Italy 0-3 (27:29, 14:25, 20:25)

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🏐| STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Brazil 9
2. Japan 8
3. USA 8
4. Italy 7
5. Slovenia 6
6. Bulgaria 6
7. Ukraine 6
8. Serbia 6
9. Poland 5
10. Canada 5
11. Belgium 3
12. Türkiye 3
13. Iran 3
14. France 2
15. Germany 2
16. China 1
17. Cuba 1
18. Argentina 0

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🏐| NEXT GAMES

— Sunday | June 14, 2026 —

| Pool 3 – Week 1 – Linyi 🇨🇳
• 13.00 (Local Time) | Ukraine – Poland
• 16.30 (Local Time) | China – Cuba
• 20.00 (Local Time) | Slovenia – Japan

| Pool 2 – Week 1 – Brasilia 🇧🇷
• 11.00 (Local Time) | Belgium – Iran
• 14.30 (Local Time) | Bulgaria – Serbia
• 18.00 (Local Time) | Brazil – Argentina

| Pool 1 – Week 1 – Ottawa 🇨🇦
• 11.00 (Local Time) | Germany – France
• 14.30 (Local Time) | Canada – Türkiye
• 18.00 (Local Time) | USA – Italy

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