Sadly, men embrace volleyball’s underdog label after World Cup draw

MANILA, Philippines – As the clear underdog of the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, Alas Pilipinas is embracing the pressure of hosting the tournament as it makes its debut at the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship.

The Philippines were paired with African and Asian powers in Pool A during a star-studded draw ceremony held at Solaire Resort in Parañaque City on Saturday, September 14.

Still, the Filipinos believe they have something to show in the group stage against Iran, ranked 15 in the world and runners-up at the Asian Championship; Egypt, ranked 20 in the world and reigning African champions; and Tunisia, ranked 24 in the world and winner of 11 continental titles.

The Philippines, the first Southeast Asian country to host the World Cup, will be the lowest-ranked team in the tournament at 64th place when the Games are held in Manila from September 12 to 28, 2025.

“There is no pressure for us because we all know there are no (high) expectations… they (may even) expect us to lose, but everything we train for, we will show them in the games,” Alas Men winger Buddin said in Filipino.

“Ipapakita (name) can go to the Pilipinas men’s volleyball team, and maglaro maglaro to makalaban, hindi lang to the World Championship, to the SEA Games“, he added.

(We want to show that the Philippines has something to offer and we want to continue competing not only in the World Cup but also in the Southeast Asian Games.)

Drawing results

The draw results, described as “equal” by FIVB ambassador and Dutch volleyball player Nimir Abdel-Aziz, saw world number 1 Poland placed in Pool B alongside number 13 Netherlands, number 21 Qatar and number 26 Romania.

Two-time reigning Olympic champions France lead Pool C, which includes number 9 Argentina, number 23 Finland and number 28 Korea.

Pool D consists of No. 3 United States, No. 12 Cuba, No. 22 Portugal and No. 45 Colombia.

World number 4 Slovenia will play in Group E against number 8 Germany, number 19 Bulgaria and number 27 Chile.

In Group F, world champions Italy will face number 14 Ukraine, number 16 Belgium and number 50 Algeria.

World number 6 Japan will face world number 11 Canada, world number 17 Turkey and world number 44 Libya in Pool G.

Pool H completes the eight pools with No. 7 Brazil, No. 10 Serbia, No. 18 Czech Republic and No. 25 China.

‘Big challenge’

Despite the stiff competition, Alas head coach Angiolino Frigoni believes the Philippines was relatively lucky in the draw, having to avoid top teams from Europe and America.

“I can say that for us all the teams are quite difficult, but (our group divisions) are not as difficult as Italy, Poland and everything,” Frigoni, who previously coached Egypt, told reporters.

Still, Frigoni knows the World Championships will be a “big responsibility” and a “big challenge” for Alas Men, and he admits they are still a long way from being an Asian contender.

“Even if the World Cup is still far away… the World Cup is not the end of volleyball (for the Philippines), it is just the beginning of volleyball. And to build a team, and to build a team of good level, you need years, not months,” Frigoni said.

“And this is part of the program that the federation is supposed to do. So start with this period to build a team and continue after the World Cup. I expect us to do our best, compete against everyone, and fight against everyone and not give up on anyone.”

Unfortunately, according to Ramon “Tats” Suzara, president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) and the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), the men will play at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The national team will also headline the opening match on September 12, 2025, which will begin with a concert, Suzara said.

Saturday’s draw, headlined by OPM icon Gary Valenciano, was led by FIVB ambassadors Nimir Abdel-Aziz from the Netherlands, Nootsara Tomkom from Thailand and Tine Urnaut from Slovenia.

Next year, the games will be held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum and the Mall of Asia Arena.

The top two teams from each of the eight groups will advance to the knockout round of 16, after which they will progress to the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final. – Rappler.com