Volleyball is captivating audiences globally at an unprecedented scale, with the 2025 VNL achieving record-breaking viewership in key markets.
The 2025 Volleyball Nations League (VNL) has achieved remarkable success, setting new broadcast records and significantly boosting volleyball`s popularity in major markets such as Brazil, Poland, and Türkiye. Recent data underscores the tournament`s rapid expansion and solidifies volleyball`s standing as one of the world`s most-watched live sports.
Brazil`s Unprecedented Enthusiasm
In Brazil, the VNL experienced unprecedented enthusiasm. Dedicated coverage in 2025 exceeded 666 hours, a 24% increase from the prior year, with 16% of the national TV audience, totaling 11.1 million viewers, tuning in. Since 2022, the VNL has gained 12.4 million new Brazilian viewers, indicating substantial growth. A women`s match between Brazil and Italy on Globo attracted an average live audience of 2.7 million, becoming the second most-viewed sports broadcast of the year, excluding football. On pay TV, VNL matches claimed all top 10 live sports broadcasts in 2025, with a weekly average cumulative audience of 1.6 million, surpassing major events like F1, Wimbledon, and the NBA.
Surge in Polish Viewership
Poland also saw a significant rise in VNL viewership, with over 1,046 hours of dedicated coverage in 2025, a 42% increase from 2024. The men`s final between Poland and Italy drew a historic combined audience of 3.8 million across Polsat Sport 1 and free-to-air channels, marking Polsat Sport`s largest sports audience in 25 years. This year`s VNL accounted for eight of Polsat`s top ten VNL audiences over the past two years. The league`s weekly average cumulative audience of 5.3 million significantly surpassed other live sports on the network, including the Open Championship, F1, UFC, and the NBA.
Growth in Türkiye
Türkiye saw a 63% increase in VNL coverage hours from 2024, totaling nearly 400 hours. A women`s pool match between Türkiye and Czechia on TRT 1 garnered an average live audience of 1.1 million, a 35% increase from the previous year`s peak. Throughout the season, the VNL reached a weekly cumulative audience of 1.5 million, outperforming other major live sports events like the UEFA Women’s Euros and Wimbledon.
Volleyball`s Global Ascent
Globally, the VNL is consistently breaking its own viewership records and exceeding the performance of many long-standing sports properties. These impressive results clearly demonstrate volleyball`s surging popularity and its ability to captivate audiences worldwide on an unparalleled scale.
Jasper Thornfield 
Oliver Wrenwick