Defending champions Italy will battle Bulgaria in the final of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship after both squads scored semifinal victories on Saturday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Italy stunned world No. 1 Poland with a straight-sets win, 25-21, 25-22, 25-23, to return to the gold medal match. Bulgaria, meanwhile, secured its first finals appearance in 55 years after a hard-fought 3-1 triumph over Czechia.
The final showdown is set on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. with Poland and Czechia clashing earlier at 2:30 p.m. for the bronze medal.
Poland appeared in control early in the semifinal, but Italy, behind the firepower of opposite Yuri Romano and outside hitters Alessandro Michieletto and Mattia Bottolo, turned the momentum in their favor.
Romano led all scorers with 15 points, while Michieletto added 12, including the match-clinching spike.
Italy also had the edge in attacking (34-30 in kills) and serving (7-3 in aces), while limiting its errors to 23 compared to Poland’s 25. Wilfredo Leon paced Poland with 14 points in the loss.
Earlier, Bulgaria carved out a 25-20, 23-25, 25-21, 25-22 win against Czechia to guarantee its first medal since 2006 and first finals appearance since 1970.
Aleksandar Nikolov powered the Bulgarians with a tournament-best 31 points, while captain Aleks Grozdanov added 12 markers.
Bulgaria dominated in key scoring areas, tallying 56 kills, 12 blocks, and eight aces. Czechia’s Lukas Vasina led his team with 17 points in a valiant effort.
Italy will aim for back-to-back titles, while Bulgaria chases history in Sunday’s gold medal match.
