Host Philippines suffers record heavy loss on opening day of volleyball world championship

In their first time participating in the Men's Volleyball World Championship, the host team Philippines had to go through a sad record in the opening match, which took place on the evening of September 12.

Host Philippines is too weak at the Men's Volleyball World Championship - Photo: FIVB

The Philippines has never been a volleyball powerhouse, and their qualification to the World Championships was purely due to their hosting role.

The opening ceremony of the tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena was extremely spectacular, with a capacity of up to 20,000 seats. This is one of the largest indoor stadiums in Asia, completely worthy of hosting a world championship.

But then, the host Philippines' performance was completely unsuitable for this level of play.

Mall of Asia Arena makes a big impression - Photo: FIVB

Tunisia are not a particularly strong side. They were in the bottom group in the draw and are currently ranked 40th in the world. But that is still too much for the hosts.

The Philippines is ranked only 89th in the world and has never reached the finals of the Southeast Asian Championship (SEA V.League).

Despite using many foreign players, the Philippines was still too weak against Tunisia. In the first set, Tunisia won easily 25-13. At one point, they even led 12-1, an opening match that deserved to be considered a "nightmare" for the home fans.

In the first set, the Filipino players were barely able to smash the ball over the Tunisian wall. Even receiving a serve from their opponents seemed like too much.

The home team played better in game 2, losing only 17-25, and exploded in game 3. The Philippines competed for every point with Tunisia in this game and eventually lost 23-25.

Philippine athletes are too weak against Tunisia - Photo: FIVB

However, it must be admitted that Tunisia lost their grip after the first set. Their head coach put many substitute players on the field, and most of them were not as enthusiastic as in the first set.

The home team losing 0-3 in the opening match is extremely rare in the history of the world volleyball tournament.

In 1998, host Japan also lost 0-3 to Spain. But the European team was too strong, and only won each game by a narrow margin. After that, Japan won all 2 remaining matches to qualify for the next round.

As for the Philippines, they will certainly receive two more heavy losses when they have to face Iran and Egypt - teams that are stronger than Tunisia.

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HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chu-nha-philippines-thua-dam-ky-luc-trong-ngay-mo-man-giai-bong-chuyen-the-gioi-20250912192738944.htm