The Belgian national volleyball teams have learned their host cities and pools for the Volleyball Nations League 2026. Both the Red Dragons and the Yellow Tigers will once again play three competition weeks in an intensive format, with a total of twelve matches over five weeks. The Nations League is an important tournament for both national teams to collect world ranking points with a view to the Olympic Games in 2028. The exact match days and start times will be confirmed later by the organiser.

Red Dragons heading to Brazil, Poland and Japan

The Red Dragons will start their VNL campaign in Brasilia (Brazil) from June 10 to 14, followed by Gliwice (Poland) from June 24 to 28. The third and final pool week will take place in Kansai (Japan) from July 15 to 19.

Belgium will face the following countries per competition week:

• Week 1, Brasilia, June 10–14: Brazil, Argentina, Bulgaria, Serbia and Iran.
  
• Week 2, Gliwice, June 24–28: Poland, Argentina, Germany, Türkiye and China.
  
• Week 3, Kansai, July 15–19: Japan, Italy, Argentina, Canada and Cuba.
  

National coach Emanuele Zanini looks ahead:
“For the group, this will be a very special experience. For most players, it will be their first time in the Volleyball Nations League, and that was also a goal we worked very hard for. We’re happy we achieved it. Above all, we need to prepare well mentally, because it will be tough. The schedule is intense, almost like a short club season with twelve matches in five weeks. Our players already have experience with travel and managing jet lag, but it remains a challenge. We’re mainly very excited to get started and to prepare in a focused way for that opening week.”

Yellow Tigers with two trips to China and volleyball-mad Türkiye

For the Yellow Tigers, two trips to China are on the programme, with Nanjing from June 3 to 7 and Hong Kong from July 8 to 12. In between, they will play in Ankara (Türkiye) from June 17 to 21.

Belgium will face the following countries per competition week:

• Week 1, Nanjing, June 3–7: China, Serbia, Poland, Czechia and Thailand.
  
• Week 2, Ankara, June 17–21: Türkiye, Brazil, France, Germany and China.
  
• Week 3, Hong Kong, July 8–12: China, Italy, Ukraine, Canada and the Dominican Republic.
  

National coach Kris Vansnick highlights the logistics and the sporting challenge:
“We’re relieved to finally know where we will complete our Volleyball Nations League. With two trips to China, they will be demanding journeys to the host venues each time. These are also two new destinations for the Yellow Tigers where we have never played before. In week two we’ll play in volleyball-mad Türkiye, where we will compete in Ankara in a well-known environment. Now the major logistical work regarding flight organisation, jet lag and training build-up can finally be completed. On February 6 the final match schedule will be known, so it’s still difficult to anticipate more. In any case, the pools are balanced in each of the three competition weeks. The group is once again really looking forward to being active on this great stage of the volleyball world. Week one already seems very important in terms of ranking, with countries like Thailand, Czechia and Serbia in our pool.”