The reigning Olympic champions, Italy, came from behind to defeat Brazil 3-1, securing another gold medal and solidifying their position at the top of international women`s volleyball.
Leaders in the FIVB World Ranking, Italy`s women`s volleyball team continued their impressive run, securing their third consecutive major title on Sunday by winning the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2025 in Łódź, Poland.
The Olympic champions claimed their third VNL trophy, following previous wins in 2022 and 2024. They achieved this with a comeback 3-1 (22-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-22) victory against Brazil in front of a capacity crowd at the Atlas Arena in the final match.
Italy 🇮🇹 vs. Brazil 🇧🇷 – Gold Match | Women`s VNL 2025 – Highlights
Now boasting an undefeated streak of 29 international matches, the European side rose to the top of the World Rankings after their VNL and Paris Olympics victories in 2024. They reaffirmed their status as the world`s number one team with a flawless campaign in the VNL 2025, culminating in the title with 15 wins and only eight sets lost.
Head coach Julio Velasco commented on the final: “The gold medal match was very difficult, and Brazil never gave up. We didn’t play our best volleyball, but we fought the entire time, and our bench players were able to come in and make a difference for us. I’m very proud of the group. This is a special group of players, which has a lot of talent, but also a great mentality and the willingness to work hard every day.”
Italy is now only the second national team to have won the women’s VNL in three different seasons, joining the United States, who triumphed in 2018, 2019, and 2021. Türkiye were the champions in 2023. Brazil, on the other hand, holds the unique distinction of having won four VNL medals, all silver, in 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2025.
Eight players have been part of all three Italian VNL title-winning squads: setter Alessia Orro, opposite Paola Egonu, outside hitters Myriam Sylla, Alice Degradi, and Loveth Omoruyi, middle blocker Anna Danesi, and liberos Monica De Gennaro and Eleonora Fersino.
Opposite Ekaterina Antropova delivered an outstanding performance off the bench in the gold medal match, stepping in for Paris Olympics MVP Egonu and contributing an impressive 18 points (13 kills, four blocks, one ace). Sylla had her best VNL 2025 match against the Brazilians, adding 16 points with 13 kills and three blocks.
To secure the title, the Italians also had to overcome an injury to outside hitter Alice Degradi, who sustained what appeared to be a left ankle problem during the second set. She was replaced by 21-year-old Stella Nervini, who contributed seven points, all in kills, to the victory.
Sylla reacted to the win: “I love this team. We’re very happy and worked together to get here. I think that today we showed what the word ‘team’ means for us. If someone is down or gets injured, we have other people ready to come in and bring their best.”
On the Brazilian side, team captain Gabriela ‘Gabi’ Guimarães was the most productive player, scoring 15 points (ten kills, four blocks, one ace). Middle blocker Julia Kudiess also stood out with seven kills and five blocks, contributing a total of 12 points in the gold medal match.
Gabi reflected on the game: “I think they showed the quality of their squad today. We started well and were able to put them in difficult situations, but our level dropped after the first set. And to beat a team like Italy, just playing well isn’t enough. I thought we saw today that we can beat them, but also that to do it, we need to be consistent and to take advantage of the opportunities we have. But I thought it was a great VNL for us. The team did very well, and it was great to see some younger players stepping up and taking big roles with the team.”
The Italians were superior in nearly every aspect of the game, outscoring their opponents in kills (58 to 45), blocks (14 to 12), and aces (three to two). However, the Europeans made more unforced errors than the Brazilians, giving up 28 points to the South Americans’ 22.
Both Italy and Brazil are expected to be among the favorites to win gold at the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship, scheduled to be held in Thailand from August 22 to September 7.
Jasper Thornfield