Alas Pilipinas Faces Egypt in Crucial FIVB World Championship Match

MANILA, Philippines — The Filipino men's volleyball team, Alas Pilipinas, is preparing to challenge African powerhouse Egypt in a pivotal match at the FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship on Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena. A victory for the Philippines would mark an unprecedented achievement in the nation’s volleyball history.

Italian coach Angiolino Frigoni expressed optimism following the team's progress during their opening match against Tunisia last Friday, where despite a straight-set loss (25-13, 25-17, 25-23), the team showcased notable improvement, especially in the third set.

“We're starting to play our volleyball,” Frigoni remarked, hoping that this momentum will continue against Egypt, ranked No. 21 globally by the FIVB — a substantial advantage over the Philippines’ No. 89 ranking.

Egypt arrives confident after an impressive upset over Iran (25-17, 16-25, 25-23, 25-20) on Sunday. The six-time African champions are favored, but the Filipinos are banking on the formidable performance of Bryan Bagunas, who tallied 23 points during their World Championship debut.

Alas Pilipinas captain Bagunas commented, “We hope to play the way we did in that third set when we face Egypt.”

Egyptian players acknowledged the challenge ahead. Spiker Abdelrahman Elhossiny recognized the Filipino team's talent, while teammate Seifelding Hassan Aly noted the potential impact of the home crowd, stating, “It will be tough for sure because we're here in the Philippines and they have their fans so it will be so difficult, but we will deal with it.”

Tuesday's volleyball schedule also features matches at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, where Argentina faces Korea at 10:30 a.m., Ukraine takes on Algeria at 2 p.m., France meets Finland at 6 p.m., and Italy competes against Belgium at 9:30 p.m.

On Monday, Cuba secured their first win in Pool D by defeating Colombia (25-22, 25-21, 25-20), while Turkey maintained an undefeated record in Pool G after overcoming Libya (25-18, 23-25, 25-14, 25-16). Canada advanced to the round of 16 by eliminating Japan with a straight-set victory (25-20, 25-23, 25-22). Meanwhile, Germany improved to a 1-1 record in Pool E following a three-set win over Chile (25-17, 25-23, 25-21).