China and Italy fought for bronze medal
Organized by the Sports Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, Galaxy Entertainment Group and the Volleyball Association of Macao, China, Women’s Volleyball Nations League – Finals Macao 2026 presented by Galaxy Entertainment Group was wrapped up today (26 July) at the Macau East Asian Games Dome. A 3–1 victory over Brazil earned Türkiye the championship of women’s VNL 2026, while Italy outplayed China 3–1 to claim third.
Türkiye fight back to beat Brazil and win championship
In the ultimate showdown of the finals where Türkiye against Brazil, Brazil took the opener 25-23 with multiple players contributing on offense, especially Ana Cristina, who fired all-round attacksand scored 8 points in the set. The game was soon squared when Melissa Vargas converted several fierce back-court attacks to level the match at 25–23. The third set was a heated battle, with scores tied multiple times and lead going back and forth between two teams. The set was eventually pushed to overtime and Türkiye closed it off at 26-24. Riding the momentum, Türkiye stormed to a 8-2 lead in the fourth set. The Brazilians never gave up and bounced back to lead 19-18. However, Türkiye regained control in no time and powered to a 25-21 victory, closing out the match 3-1 to claim the gold medal. Melissa Vargas finished with a game-high 33 points and was named MVP, powering Türkiye lift the championship trophy again after their first title in 2023.
Italy won the bronze medal
In the third place match, Italy established early control, closing the opening set decisively at 25-16. The host team broke away with a 17-14 lead as Zhuang Yushan fired three aces in a row and eventually edged out Italy 25-23 to level the match. The third set was a back-and-forth one as China led 3-0 at first but Italy managed to chase back. After 18-18, China could not keep up with effective defense and lost 22-25. The final set was dominated by the previous title owner. With Ekaterina Antropova scoring a match-high 26 points, Italy secured the bronze medal of this year’s women VNL tournament.
During the match, as a token of appreciation, President of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Fabio Azevedo presented souvenirs to the local organizing committee. Representative of the secretary for social affairs and culture of the Macao SAR government, Acting President of the Sports Bureau, President of the organizing committee,Lei Si Leng, Director of Corporate Affairs of Galaxy Entertainment Group Buddy Lam, and Secretary General of Volleyball Association of Macao, China Fong Sok Van received the souvenirs.
For details of the event, please visit the event website at www.macaovnl.com or the Sports Bureau website at www.sport.gov.mo, or follow the “Macao Major Sporting Events” Facebook page, “澳門體育” (Macao Sports) WeChat official account and “澳門特區體育局” (Macao SAR Sports Bureau) WeChat subscription account.
