Former national coach Plamen Konstantinov added the Russian Cup to his rich collection of trophies, which his team Lokomotiv Novosibirsk won. The "railroaders" first eliminated champion Zenit Kazan in the semifinals to face Moscow's "Dynamo", led by the current coach of the "sbornaya" Konstantin Bryansky, in the battle for the trophy.
The teams shared two sets with an identical result, leading to a dramatic tie-break, in which the teams went point for point, with Dynamo being the first to reach eight. On two occasions, Lokomotiv had the chance to take a two-point lead, but errors led to 12:13 for Dynamo, when Konstantinov took a timeout. Kurkaev equalized through the center, but Podlesnykh brought the capital team to match point (13:14). A brilliant tip by Lokomotiv's setter Igor Kobzar led to another equalizer. Ivovich brought his team to match point after a technical block-out, which forced Bryansky to call a timeout. Konstantinov made a substitution, replacing Ivovich, who had played excellently in this match, with Maxim Bogatko, to raise the block on the first line. His services were not needed, because Kurbanov spiked an ace, which was confirmed by video replay.
"For a long time we were becoming a team. Only at the end of the season did I see that we had not only individual good players, but also a team where everyone played for each other. In the final we showed character, we didn't give up. The team came together, albeit a little late," Plamen Konstantinov noted for the website "BO Sport". In the national championship, his team rarely managed to defeat its direct competitors, which led to a final sixth place. The coach of "Loko" himself admitted in an interview for the publication that when things didn't work out with Yoandy Leal, the team had already started preparing for the next season. So, why did "Lokomotiv" explode in the "Final Six"? First of all, thanks to the miraculous play of their Dagestani "eagles" - Radzhab Shakhbanmirzaev and Omar Kurbanov.

Lokomotiv won the Russian Cup for the third time in its history (2010, 2011, 2025). Dynamo remains with four trophies (2006, 2008, 2020, 2024).

The most effective players in the match were Loko's receivers Kurbanov and Ivovich, accumulating 21 points each. The Serbian legionnaire realized 71% of his attacks (17/24) and was deservedly named MVP.
Tsvetan Sokolov finished the match with 4 points, with Maxim Sapozhkov, who played in Montana, on the court for most of the time. The other, who was in Dani Peev's team, Dmitry Molotkov, came in to serve, without scoring an ace.

Lokomotiv Novosibirsk - Dynamo Moscow 3:2 (25:18, 19:25, 21:25, 25:21, 16:14)
Ivovich (21), Kurbanov (21), Shakhbanmirzaev (17) – Sapozhkov (19), Podlesnykh (11), Semyshev (10)

full statisticshere