The South Americans completed their schedule in Belgrade with three victories and moved up to seventh place.
Argentina concluded the second week of the Volleyball Nations League 2025 Preliminary Phase positioned within the qualification zone for the Finals. This was achieved after a hard-fought five-set victory over Cuba in Belgrade on Sunday, marking their fifth win overall in the tournament.
Following a win against hosts Serbia on Saturday, the South Americans performed decisively when needed, utilizing their technical skills to counter Cuba`s physical play. They triumphed 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-21, 21-25, 15-11) in their final match in Belgrade.
This victory added two points to Argentina`s total in the VNL standings, bringing them to 13 points and lifting them to seventh place. The top seven teams from the Preliminary Phase, along with hosts China, qualify for the Finals in Ningbo, scheduled from July 30 to August 3. Cuba, despite winning their first three matches in Belgrade, now sit just below Argentina in ninth place with the same 13 points but only four victories.
Young opposite Germán Gómez was a key player for Argentina, delivering another strong performance with 22 points, all from kills. Outside hitter Luciano Palonsky contributed 18 points, consisting of 17 kills and one block.
“It was an amazing match for us,” said setter Matías Sánchez. “They are a fantastic team, and we`re very happy to have won it. It was very important for us, and we ended the week very well. Cuba serve very well and have great blockers, so we tried to be very efficient with our offense.”
For Cuba, captain and outside hitter Miguel Ángel López was the top scorer with 18 points, all from kills. Opposite Jose Masso added 17 points, including 13 kills, three blocks, and one ace.
In other matches held in Belgrade on the same day, Iran defeated the Netherlands in five sets (25-19, 22-25, 21-25, 25-19, 15-9). Germany also secured a victory, beating hosts Serbia 3-1 (25-20, 25-21, 23-25, 25-17).
Ukraine Stages Comeback Victory Against Bulgaria in Burgas
In Burgas, the home team, Bulgaria, also experienced a defeat on the final day of matches. After taking an early lead against Ukraine, they were unable to maintain their advantage, as Ukraine mounted a comeback to win the match 3-1 (20-25, 25-19, 26-24, 25-22).
Earlier in Burgas, Japan swept Slovenia 3-0 (27-25, 25-15, 25-16), and France also claimed a 3-0 victory against Türkiye (25-20, 25-18, 25-19), concluding the day`s schedule in the Bulgarian city.
The VNL 2025 will have a one-week break before the women return to action from July 9-13. The men will compete again from July 16-20, with pools held in Chiba, Japan, Gdańsk, Poland, and Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Jasper Thornfield 
Oliver Wrenwick