The program for the Men's World Volleyball Championship 2025 in the Philippines on Sunday promises real spectacles. The day begins with the most anticipated clash of the round of 16 – Argentina versus Italy, and in the evening we will see the surprises of the tournament so far – Belgium and Finland, who will compete for a place among the top eight.

Argentina – Italy

The South Americans arrive at the knockout stage in excellent form. They finished first in their Pool C, undefeated, and sensationally eliminated the reigning two-time Olympic champions France after a five-set battle. The Argentinians also showed character in the match against Finland, where they made a complete comeback from 0:2 sets down. The squad features the record-holder for World Championship appearances - 37-year-old setter Luciano De Cecco, a leader in statistics for most successful rallies (137), outside hitter Luciano Palonsky – second in positive reception throughout the tournament, as well as opposite hitter Pablo Kukartsev, who is the team's top scorer with 51 points and third in blocks. Kukartsev is also a future teammate of Alex Nikolov at Lube.

For Italy, this is a mission to defend their world title. The "Azzurri" are among the most decorated teams in the history of the championships – three consecutive titles in the 90s and gold from 2022. Although they started with convincing victories over Algeria and Ukraine, they suffered a surprising loss to Belgium after a tie-break and finished second in Group F. The star Alessandro Michieletto made the strongest impression, scoring 44 points in the three matches.

Belgium – Finland

The evening program pits two teams against each other who have exceeded expectations. The team finished first in Group F undefeated and delivered one of the tournament's sensations – a 3:2 victory over Italy. Allianz Milano's 22-year-old opposite hitter Ferre Reggers is the discovery of the championship – the top scorer in the group stage with 73 points and second in attack efficiency after Alex Nikolov. Libero Gorik Lantsooght also shone, leading the defense ranking – with 33 saved balls.

Finland, for its part, relies on youth and courage. Luka Marttila is number one in positive reception with 27 successful plays, and middle blocker Petteri Tyrnismaa topped the blocking ranking with 12 direct points from this element. "Suomi" started with a dramatic loss to Argentina after a comeback, but shocked world volleyball with a victory over France in five sets and solidified their form against Korea.

Program for Sunday, September 21, 2025

The two matches carry different intrigues – the first pits the world champion and this year's VNL runner-up against the most successful South American team of recent years, while the second is a clash of youth and ambition, which will secure one of the underdogs a historic placement among the top eight.