Intensified preparations for men’s world Volleyball match

Preparations gain significant momentum this Wednesday, New Year’s Day, as the countdown to the inaugural 2025 Solo Men’s Volleyball World Championship (MWCH) in the Philippines accelerates, leaving just nine months left.

Thirty-one of the best volleyball teams in the world, out of the 32 planned, will set down on Philippine soil for this competition which will take place from September 12 to 28, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena and the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“This is the time when the preparations and organization become meticulous every day. We are in a year of the FIVB World Championship, and as a first-time host country, our goal is to make this event a near-perfect success,” said Ramon “Tats” Suzara, President of the National Volleyball Federation of the Philippines, who was also elected president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation and executive vice president of the FIVB in 2024.

“We have done this before, and we are expected to repeat this performance,” added Suzara, who played a key role in co-hosting the FIBA ​​Basketball World Cup in 2023.

Building confidence for a potentially successful edition of MWCH 2025, the Malacañang commitment was established during the first high-level organizational meeting at the Palace, held on April 30, 2024, under the chairmanship of the Premier Dame Liza Araneta Marcos and William Vincent “Vinny” Araneta Marcos, co-president of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC), in the presence of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, also president emeritus of the PNVF, and the Secretary of Tourism, Christina Garcia Frasco.

This support was deepened during the one-year countdown and raffle held last September at Solaire, followed immediately by the “Concierto sa Palacio,” a musical evening at Malacañang Palace, where the President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the First Lady and young Marcos welcomed top officials of the FIVB and LOC.

Fabio Azevedo, FIVB general secretary turned president, praised the enthusiasm of President Marcos and his family towards volleyball and sport in general. “It was great to see how much the president [Marcos] is committed to promoting volleyball, and it is equally impressive to see the euphoria of volleyball in the Philippines,” said Fabio, who presented President Marcos with a painting by Slaven Dizdarevic, a Slovak Olympic decathlete , during the “Concierto”.

The involvement of top government authorities in this world championship also gained momentum with the first meeting of the Inter-Agency Technical Working Group, initiated by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) last November at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex .

The MWCH 2025 Local Organizing Committee also includes Senator Pia Cayetano, Manuel V. Pangilinan, Philippine Olympic Committee President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino and PSC President Richard Bachmann.

Significant activities will take place ahead of the world championship, including an International Road Show planned for the first half of the year, a mascot competition and launch, a trophy tour, a press conference for the media, a meeting of team managers, a test event and a 100 day countdown in June.

The Philippines are in Group A alongside 11-time African champions Tunisia, current African champions and Paris Olympic qualifiers Egypt, and runners-up Iran. of Asia in 2024. Other groups include Poland, current world number one, France, champions of the Volleyball Nations League, and other renowned nations like the United States, Italy and the Brazil.