Seppe Rotty`s five aces propel Belgium to a decisive victory.
Belgium’s captain Sam Deroo congratulates Seppe Rotty during their match against Ukraine at the Men’s Volleyball World Championship.
The 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in the Philippines witnessed a powerful debut from Belgium`s “Red Dragons.” In their opening Pool F fixture held in Quezon City on Sunday, the Belgian squad achieved a clean sweep against Ukraine, securing a straight-sets win.
Ranked 17th globally by FIVB, Belgium displayed a commanding performance, defeating the 14th-ranked Ukrainian team with set scores of 25-16, 25-17, and 25-22. This impressive shutout resulted in a transfer of 14.74 ranking points from Ukraine to Belgium. Following the match, Ukraine slipped to 16th place, while Belgium remained at 17th, now just under three points behind their Eastern European rivals.
Belgium significantly outplayed Ukraine across all key scoring metrics, recording 40 spike kills to Ukraine`s 31, 10 kill blocks to 5, and 6 aces to 4. They also made fewer unforced errors, with 15 compared to Ukraine`s 19. Outside hitter Seppe Rotty was a pivotal force, contributing five of Belgium`s six aces and accumulating a total of 13 points.
The 22-year-old star opposite, Ferre Reggers, was the match`s top scorer with an impressive 23 points, including three kill blocks and a 56% success rate in spiking. Team captain and fellow outside hitter Sam Deroo also added 12 points to the Red Dragons` triumph. For Ukraine, opposite Vasyl Tupchii was the only player to reach double digits, securing 14 points.
“We worked the whole summer for this game. That’s the first statement I will make. We pointed out from the start that this would be our key game and it is such a beautiful thing that we did it with these guys. To do it in this way against a team that had an incredible summer proves that we are here to stay,” Ferre Reggers shared with VBTV. “I did not expect so many fans. It’s incredible to have this atmosphere so far away from our country. Keep supporting us, because we are not done yet!”
Later in the same pool, Algeria is scheduled to face the defending champions, Italy, at 21:30 local time (13:30 UTC) in Quezon City.
Jasper Thornfield 
Oliver Wrenwick