Ankara, MINA – The last day of matches of the second week of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2026 Preliminary Phase had as many as six five-setters, and Germany were on the right side of one of them to take down the last undefeated team in the tournament on Sunday.
Coming from a five-set loss against hosts Türkiye on Saturday, the Europeans finished strong and avoided a second-straight reverse sweep to take down Brazil 3-2 (26-24, 28-26, 15-25, 19-25, 16-14) in Ankara.
The upset caused a change at the top of the VNL 2026 standings, as it allowed the United States to catch Brazil – each side has seven wins and 20 points, but the Americans rank first due to their better set ratio. Germany got to 11 points (three wins) and, despite continuing in 11th place, improved their position in the race for a spot in the VNL Finals.
The victory also rewarded the Germans with 13.27 FIVB World Ranking points, which was enough to move them into the top ten, now appearing in ninth place. Brazil dropped the same amount, but continue in second place.
Read Also: Pink Spiders vs. Red Sparks: 3-0, A Tense Second Set
Germany’s outside hitter duo was pivotal in their victory, as while Pia Timmer led the team with 16 points (15 kills, one ace), Romy-Aylin Jatzko added another 14, with ten kills and four blocks.
“It was really special,” Timmer reflected. “It was a team effort all around. I’m very proud of everyone who came in. We deserved it, and we rewarded ourselves. Last night was bittersweet, so it felt even more rewarding. Now we just need to keep believing in ourselves and that we can beat teams like this. This has to be our mindset.” []
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
Read Also: Melbourne Victory vs Persib: 1–2, Maung Bandung Advance to the Knockout Stage
Mina Indonesia
Mina Arabic
Mina Sport