Italy leaves little doubt who reigning champ is
Italy walked into the 2025 FIVB Men’s World Championship like it owned the stage. And in their first act, the reigning kings made sure no one forgot who’s the boss.
The defending champions brushed aside Algeria, 25-13, 25-22, 25-17, on Sunday night at Araneta Coliseum, launching their campaign with the poise and aura of a team that knows what it takes to reign.
“We just have to focus on the game without putting pressure on us about other stuff,” said captain Simone Giannelli. “The important thing is to be on the court, focused on what we have to do.”
For Italy, pressure isn’t the story. Theirs is a businesslike march toward the goal: another trip to the Finals. Since lifting the crown in 2022, they’ve continued to dominate the world stage, the kind of dominance that paints a clear bullseye on their backs.
“The guys in this team won the last world title so I guess that is a target on our backs,” said Francesco Sani. “But we’re a team that’s used to playing with and without that.”
Their performance against Algeria reflected that calm. Mattia Bottolo, an outside hitter from Bassano del Grappa, set the tone with 13 points, including two aces. He carried himself less like a man burdened by defending a crown and more like one eyeing a return to the biggest stage.
“I don’t think we have pressure because we have a mindset that we’re not the favorites to win this competition even if we have this badge,” Bottolo said, pointing to the gold emblem stitched into their jerseys. “We want to see if we can go on to the Finals because we have to focus on all of our matches step by step.”
The real test begins when they face Belgium on Tuesday at the same venue, a matchup that will reveal whether the Italians can extend their measured godfather-like stride deeper into the tournament.
