Thousands of fans are expected to attend the 32 matches of the second round as the FIVB Men-s World Championship continues in four Poland cities
Wroclaw, Poland, September 8, 2014 – Following a highly competitive first round, it looks safe to say that the best is yet to come at the FIVB Men’s World Championship in Poland.
The second round of the competition kicks off on September 10 with eight of 32 exciting matches much to the delight of volleyball lovers in the cities of Lodz, Bydgoszcz, Katowice and Wroclaw where legions of fans are expected to crowd the arenas.
With the field reduced to the sixteen best teams, after the elimination of the two last placed sides of each group who bravely competed in the preliminary phase, it is about time to sit back and look forward to the excitement that lies ahead.
The top four teams of pools A (Poland, Serbia, Argentina and Australia) and D (France, Iran, United States and Italy) have been placed in Group E to compete against each other in crossed matches in Lodz and Bydgoszcz while the top four sides of pools B (Brazil, Germany, Finland and Cuba) and C (Russia, Canada, Bulgaria and China) are to battle under the same format in Group F in Katowice and Wroclaw.
Hosts Poland were the most impressive team in the opening round where they dropped only one set to Cameroon in the process of getting the maximum 15 points in Pool A, nine of which they will carry over to the next phase as points achieved against the other three qualified sides.
Three-time defending champions Brazil and Olympic champions Russia also finished as top-place finishers with 5-0 win-loss records and are moving up with 9 and 8 points, respectively, while France commanded the so-called “Group of Death” with a 4-1 mark and are making the trip to the second stage with 7 points in their bag.
Day one in Lodz at Atlas Arena will feature the European classic battle between Serbia and Italy followed by the much expected clash of Poland and the World League champions United States.
At Luczniczka Sports Arena in Bydgoszcz it is the duel of France and Argentina and also the Asian match-up of the emerging Australia and high-spirited Iran.
The opening action at Spodek Arena in Katowice introduces powerhouse Brazil against Bulgaria followed by the encounter between Germany and China.
At Centennial Hall in Wroclaw, the powerful Russia square off against Finland while surprising Canada meet Cuba in a battle between rivals of NORCECA.
The top two teams at the conclusion of the second round will be seeded in the three-team Pools G and H with the next two best teams from groups E and F to be drawn to play in a round-robin and determine the semifinalists. The last two sides will define the fifth and sixth places.
The medal matches will take place in Katowice on September 21 with the last two of 103 matches celebrated in Poland to close a long process that included the participation of 148 countries hailing from the five continents.