2026 FIVB Men's Club World Championship: Perugia, Sada Cruzeiro and the Clash of Four Continents

On the table sit three cups of coffee gone cold, and the phone screen glows bright with the number of more than five thousand live viewers. Three former women's national volleyball players sit across from me — one has just finished telling the story of the 2026 SEA Games final, another has just recalled the double scored by a seventeen-year-old at Lạch Tray. I ask them: do you follow the men's club world championship? One shakes her head. Another smiles and says men's volleyball is more austere. So I write this piece, for those who have never sat in front of a screen at midnight to watch a men's volleyball rally. The story is this: FIVB has just locked the list of eight clubs for the 2026 FIVB Men's Volleyball Club World Championship, to be held in Poland. Eight teams, four continents — a map that is imperfect but rich enough to open a larger story. The list includes Sir Safety Perugia of Italy, Sada Cruzeiro and Vôlei Renata of Brazil, Ziraat Bankası of Türkiye, Al Ahly of Egypt, Foolad Sirjan Iranian of Iran and Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi of Indonesia. The remaining berth, most likely a host-nation Polish side, will be announced later. More than five thousand viewers on the live stream with three former national players — I am no longer alone. I have said that line many times, but that night it was true in a different way. For among a volleyball culture that usually remembers only domestic leagues and national teams, a club tournament featuring representatives from four continents is a rare thing worth spending time on. I came to volleyball back in the 1980s, when all of Hải Phòng still gathered around black-and-white televisions to watch domestic events. Back then, the very notion of a world club championship was foreign. Italian and Brazilian men's volleyball were already strong, but no one in Vietnam followed them match by match. Only later, when the internet arrived, did I start watching Perugia, Sada Cruzeiro, and European finals at three in the morning. At sixty I still think of myself as the girl leaping on the stands at Lạch Tray — only now I leap in front of a computer screen in a small apartment overlooking the port. In June 2026, the newsroom sent me to Moscow for the World Cup. After a night of beer with Brazilian colleagues, I was swept up in the festival atmosphere, forgot to record the French head coach's press conference, and had to ask a younger colleague for his tape. The Russia World Cup taught me this: sometimes forgetting your assignment is the longest-lasting way to remember the craft. Since then, I have learned that a great tournament is not just about the score — it is about the people who collide around it. The FIVB Men's Club World Championship is no new playground. It has a long history, with storied champions. But it is only in the 2026 edition that the entry list reveals a clear geographic expansion. Four continents are represented. Three clubs are making their debut. One African side carries the banner of an entire continent. One Southeast Asian club carries the historic story of Indonesian volleyball. And above all, a reigning world champion sits at the peak of its form. I want to begin with Perugia, because it is the yardstick every other team must look to. Sir Safety Perugia is not only the reigning world club champion. They are also the reigning CEV Champions League champions — the number one club competition in Europe. In the hands of their coach is Oleh Plotnytskyi, the Ukrainian outside hitter, one of the best hitters in the world at club level. There is Simone Giannelli, the Italian national team setter, the brain behind almost every point the Umbrian side scores. That roster is enough to shape an entire system. Perugia plays a high-tempo attacking brand built on setter quality and the variety of two wing hitters. When Plotnytskyi is at his peak, opposing blocks have almost no way of predicting the ball's direction. Giannelli distributes on his own rhythm, forcing the block to move constantly. This is the kind of team that makes opponents lose their timing from the very first set. But Perugia are not invincible. And this is where I want to go deep. Sada Cruzeiro is the Brazilian club that has won the world title five times — a number that commands a bow from anyone in the volleyball world. The side from Belo Horizonte represents the South American school: abundant physicality, powerful wing attacks, unshaken competitive spirit. They do not carry the media glamour of Perugia, but they own something more important: an instinct for winning knockout matches. Historically, Brazilian sides tend to peak precisely when needed. They do not win convincingly in the group stage, but once they reach the semifinals and final, they become a different team. I have seen matches like this at national-team level. Brazilian men's volleyball has a quiet kind of strength — not explosive, but persistent, tiring opponents until they collapse in the deciding set. Vôlei Renata, also of Brazil, is the second South American representative. This is an interesting unknown. While Sada Cruzeiro are recognised as giants, Vôlei Renata can trouble anyone in a short tournament. The internal diversity of Brazilian volleyball is what keeps the country sustainably strong. Two Brazilian clubs in the field is a clear signal of the depth of the Superliga. On the European side, beyond Perugia, there is Ziraat Bankası of Türkiye. This is a club making its debut at the world club level. Türkiye has a strong men's league regionally, but at the world club stage they remain inexperienced. Importantly, this club is often heavily invested in, recruiting high-quality foreign players. If well prepared, they could surprise. If not, they will learn more than they win. Poland is the host, but no Polish club appears in the list. This is a telling detail. In previous editions, the host nation was often given a wild card to draw local audiences. If Poland does the same, the tournament story gains another layer: Polish volleyball is very strong, both at national-team and club level. A late host entry could shift the balance in whichever group they are drawn into. Now I want to spend the rest of the piece on Asia and Africa, because that is where I see the best story. Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi is not a familiar name to global fans. But they carry a historic milestone: this is the first Indonesian men's club to win the Asian continental title. For Indonesian volleyball, that is a turning point. A volleyball nation more used to football and badminton now has its first men's representative at the world club stage. I imagine that in Jakarta, fans will follow their team the way I once followed regional women's football finals in Hải Phòng. Foolad Sirjan Iranian represents Iran, an Asian volleyball powerhouse. Iranian men's volleyball has risen to world level over more than a decade, with national teams regularly appearing at major tournaments. At club level, Foolad Sirjan Iranian is a worthy representative. Their style relies on discipline, speed and durable defence — hallmarks of Asian volleyball. Al Ahly of Egypt enter as African champions. They are the most tradition-rich club in African volleyball, and one of the most famous sports clubs in Africa overall. For Al Ahly, the tournament in Poland is a chance to assert a status beyond African borders. But the gap between African volleyball and Europe or South America remains large. What is worth discussing here is the clash of schools. European volleyball is strong in height and the power of its block. South American volleyball is strong in the speed of its attacks and its creativity. Asian volleyball is strong in technique, defence and tactical discipline. African volleyball stands out for physicality and spirit. When four schools meet in one arena in Poland, the result depends not only on the class of the teams, but on who accepts playing their own game. The travel factor is something I want to stress. For European teams, getting to Poland is almost negligible. For Brazil, it is a transatlantic flight. For Indonesia, Iran and Egypt, the distance is even greater. Time-zone shifts, different weather, and disrupted routines can all affect form in the opening sets. In such a short tournament, losing the first set can mean losing the whole match. That is why I think Asian and African teams need to arrive in Poland early, to acclimatise, to get used to the arena and to adjust their sleep and eating schedules. A week of adaptation can be worth more than a week of tactical training. The tournament format is also worth attention, though FIVB has not fully announced it. Previous editions usually featured eight teams in two groups, playing a single round-robin, with the top two from each group reaching the semifinals. This format rewards consistency over luck. A team that wins by chance in the group stage still has to prove itself in the semifinals and the final. If the 2026 format stays the same, strong teams like Perugia and Sada Cruzeiro will benefit. They have the depth to rotate in the group stage and still secure a semifinal berth. Debutants will have to push hard from the first match, which easily leads to overload late in the tournament. In terms of strength, I place Perugia as the number one contender. Behind them, Sada Cruzeiro are second with their tradition and nerve. Vôlei Renata could be the unknown. Ziraat Bankası, Foolad Sirjan Iranian and Al Ahly sit in the group competing for a semifinal spot. Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi, as newcomers, will have to learn quickly. But volleyball is not played on paper. I remember a final where the supposedly weaker side won simply because they played with nothing to lose. In volleyball, a hitter in form can change the whole picture. A setter who finds the rhythm can turn the opposing block into a non-factor. And a well-timed block can bring down the strongest team. What interests me most this year is how emerging volleyball nations will face the standards of world club volleyball. Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi will face hitters standing nearly two metres ten. Foolad Sirjan Iranian will face pressure from powerful European serves. Al Ahly will have to find a way through Perugia's thick block. This is not just about wins and losses — it is about learning and growing. There is one thing I have always believed: a volleyball nation only improves when it has the chance to collide with stronger ones. Indonesia may lose all three group matches, but the lessons they bring home will influence a whole generation of young players. Iran may or may not reach the semifinals, but the way they play will reshape Asian fans' sense of what is possible. This is the point I want to make plainly. The story most international media picked up when the list was announced is the story of globalisation. Four continents, eight teams, a diverse picture. But if you look closely at the balance of power, the gap between the European and South American group and the rest remains very large. And here is the counterintuitive part I want to put on the table. World club tournaments are often promoted as stages of equality. In reality, the financial structure of club volleyball concentrates most stars in a few clubs. Perugia has the budget of a top European side. Asian and African clubs often rely on home-grown players and a handful of modest imports. In a single match, this gap can be narrowed by spirit, but over a full tournament it usually shows. What I want to stress is not pessimism. It is clarity. A list of eight teams from four continents is a geographical step forward. But its real value lies in giving the weaker teams the chance to rub shoulders with the highest standard. If those chances stop at participation without a development path afterwards, the globalisation story becomes just a slogan. It must also be said that Perugia are not only strong on the court. They are strong in media, in image, in commercial pull. A club like that has an advantage in attracting sponsorship, in building a brand, in establishing authority with referees and audiences. Those advantages do not appear on the scoreboard, but they are present in every set. That is what newcomers need to understand. They are not only facing a team. They are facing an entire ecosystem built over decades. I have been thinking about this a lot these days, sitting in Hải Phòng and rereading the list of eight teams. I remember my own feeling when I was first sent to cover a major international event. I walked into the press room trembling, then realised that people treated me no differently from veteran colleagues. That feeling, I believe, is what the young players of Jakarta, Foolad Sirjan and Al Ahly will experience. They will walk into the arena in Poland as first-timers, and then they will realise they too deserve to stand there. For Vietnamese volleyball, this tournament is a mirror. We have a women's game that is improving, with women's clubs that have competed in Asian events. But at men's club level, we remain far from the world stage. Looking at the list of eight teams in 2026, I ask myself when a Vietnamese men's club might appear. The answer could take ten or twenty years. But if no one asks the question, the answer will never come. I do not want to end this piece with a summary. I want to end with something I keep thinking about. Volleyball is a sport of short moments. A block lasts a few seconds. A spike takes less than a breath. Three sets can pass in just over an hour. But behind those moments lies a long process, a whole system of investment, a whole foundation of sporting culture. Perugia did not become champions overnight. Sada Cruzeiro did not win five world titles by luck. And Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi did not come to Poland to fill an empty slot. A sixty-year-old fan can still run a hundred metres after a goal — that is only me. But I believe that spirit, in some form, also lives in the young players of Jakarta, Foolad Sirjan and Al Ahly. They come to Poland not to be spectators. They come to write a new chapter for their volleyball nations. And when the tournament ends, whatever the result, the most memorable thing may not be who lifts the trophy, but the image of an Indonesian hitter touching the ball for the first time against Perugia's block, or an Iranian setter feeding the ball for the first time against Sada Cruzeiro's defence. Those moments do not appear in the standings. But they are the reason I write this piece, and the reason I believe world volleyball is heading in the right direction. From Hải Phòng, I will follow this tournament match by match, set by set. Not because I love a particular team, but because I love how volleyball connects different cultures. A tournament in Poland, with eight teams from four continents, is one of the most beautiful expressions of that. And if I am lucky, I will retell it to more than five thousand viewers on a late-night live stream, alongside the three former players who have sat beside me for years. Because at sixty, what I have learned is this: the job does not end with one article. It ends with a network of people, a list of new friends, and a story still unfinished, waiting to be told tomorrow.