Who are the volleyball stars competing in the 2025 FIVB Men’s World Championship?

Volleyball stars are coming to Manila for the 2025 FIVB Men’s World Championship.

The medalists from the 2024 Paris Olympics, France, Poland, and the United States, as well as podium finishers from the 2022 FIVB World Championship, Italy and Brazil, are set to compete in Manila. They will be joined by crowd favorites Japan and, of course, hometown team Alas Pilipinas.

Here are some of the volleyball stars making their way to the Philippines, according to Volleyball World:

Earvin N’Gapeth (France)

Back-to-back Olympic gold medalists France will feature outside hitter Earvin N’Gapeth in their lineup. N’Gapeth was named Most Valuable Player in France’s gold medal runs at the Tokyo and Paris Olympics.

In addition to N’Gapeth, the rest of France’s gold medal-winning core will be present, including Stephen Boyer, a Tokyo Olympic team member who missed this year’s VNL.

Bartosz Kurek, Jakub Kochanowski and Wilfredo Leon (Poland)

Superstar Bartosz Kurek and VNL 2025 MVP and middle blocker Jakub Kochanowski headline the Polish roster alongside outside hitter Wilfredo Leon, who first gained international fame by leading Cuba to silver in the 2010 World Championship at just 17 years old. Leon later changed federations to Poland and was part of their 2024 Olympic silver medal team.

Roberto Russo, Simone Giannelli, and Alessandro Michieletto (Italy)

Defending champions Italy will bring middle blocker Roberto Russo, outside hitter Alessandro Michieletto, and setter Simone Giannelli. Giannelli was also a key member of Italy’s 2016 Rio Olympic silver medal squad.

Maique Reis Nascimento (Brazil)

VNL 2025 bronze medalist and Best Libero Maique Reis Nascimento, along with the full roster of 14 players who competed in the most recent VNL, are expected to return for the World Championship.

Micah Christenson, Erik Shoji, and Taylor Averill (USA)

Olympic bronze medalists and crowd favorites USA are returning to the Philippines. Setter Micah Christenson, libero Erik Shoji, and middle blocker Taylor Averill previously captivated Filipino fans during last year’s VNL.

Ran Takahashi, Yuki Ishikawa, and Kento Miyaura (Japan)

Crowd darlings Ryujin Nippon are heading back to the Philippines with stars Ran Takahashi and Yuki Ishikawa (outside hitters), and opposite Kento Miyaura. Japan won bronze in the 2023 VNL and silver in the 2024 edition. Rising star Masato Kai is also coming to town.

Marck Espejo and Bryan Bagunas (Philippines)

Of course, the Philippines’ very own Marck Espejo and Bryan Bagunas will headline Alas Pilipinas in their FIVB Men’s World Championship debut. Both have been longtime members of the national team and were part of the country’s silver medal squad in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. They also played professionally overseas, including stints in Japan.

Aside from these, Bulgaria's Simeon and Aleksandar Nikolov and Jan Kozamernik of Slovenia are also expected to see action in Manila. 

—JKC, GMA Integrated News