Iran learns pool fate in AVC Women’s Volleyball Cup
The Iranian national team has been drawn against defending champion Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and Lebanon in Pool B of the upcoming AVC Women’s Volleyball Cup, which begins June 6 in Candon, Philippines.
The draw for the seventh edition of the annual tournament, formerly known as the AVC Women’s Challenge Cup, took place in Manila on Friday, with 12 teams split into two groups.
Pool A will feature the host Philippines, Chinese Taipei, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Australia, and Uzbekistan.
The event marks Iran’s third participation in the tournament, following last year’s sixth-place finish in Hanoi, Vietnam, and a fifth-place finish in the 2023 edition in Gresik, Indonesia.
“The AVC Women’s Cup continues to establish itself as a premier competition, showcasing the highest level of women’s volleyball in Asia. With the strong lineup of teams this year, we are confident that the tournament will deliver exciting matches and further elevate the sport across the region,” AVC President Ramon Suzara said during the drawing ceremony.
The preliminary round will feature 30 matches across June 6-9 and June 11-12, with teams competing in a round-robin format within their respective pools. A rest day is scheduled for June 10.
The top teams from each pool will advance to the knockout stage, beginning June 13, which includes the semifinals and classification matches. The tournament will culminate on June 14 with finals for all ranking positions, including the gold medal match.
The participating teams include host Philippines, defending champion Vietnam, and top-ranked teams based on the latest world rankings: Kazakhstan, Chinese Taipei, South Korea, Iran, and Kyrgyzstan booked their places in the showpiece via the latest FIVB World Rankings.
Additional representatives from AVC zones complete the lineup, including Uzbekistan (CAVA), Hong Kong (EAVA), Australia (OZVA), Indonesia (SAVA), and Lebanon (WAVA).
Iran will play in a couple of rematches from last year’s edition, which saw the team beat Indonesia in a five-set thriller in the pool phase before falling in four sets in the classification match. South Korean head coach Lee Do-hee’s side also faced Kazakhstan in Hanoi, suffering a 3-1 loss.
Iran will look to build on a decent run of results under Lee last year, which included a historic title at the CAVA Women’s Volleyball Championship – a maiden international gold since the first Iranian national team was established in 1963 – as well as a bronze medal at the Islamic Solidarity Games in November.