Russia withdraws men's team from 2027 Volleyball World Championship in Poland, will join expanded Nations League

Russia's return to international volleyball

In early July 2026, the International Olympic Committee temporarily lifted the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, which had been in place since October 2023. The IOC recommended that sports federations end the three-year verification programme for Russian athletes and ease neutrality requirements. Shortly afterwards, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) lifted its own restrictions, allowing Russian players and officials to return to FIVB competitions and restoring Russia's ranking points. The men's team re-entered the rankings in third place, the women's team in ninth.

Withdrawal from the World Championship in Poland

On Tuesday, FIVB confirmed that the Russian Volleyball Federation had voluntarily informed it that the men's team would not take part in the 2027 World Championship, which Poland will host in September across five cities: Olsztyn, Gdańsk, Łódź, Katowice and Kraków. The Russian federation cited safety concerns and a belief that sport would be overshadowed by politics.

“A decision was made to withdraw for safety reasons. We believe that at this tournament there will be critically little sport and a great deal of politics.”

Russian commentator Dmitry Guberniev offered a blunter assessment, saying the official explanation was a pretext.

“The Poles simply won't let us in.”

Poland does not permit entry to Russian citizens, and the Polish Volleyball Federation had already signalled it could not envisage organising the championship with Russian participation.

Poland's opposition

Polish federation president Sebastian Świderski had reacted angrily to the earlier FIVB decision to restore Russia's ranking points, calling it a bizarre move that rewarded a team that had not played for four years. He also questioned how those who made the decision would feel if their own country had been attacked.

“This is an extremely frustrating decision. I invite those gentlemen who made it to Ukraine, so they can see what daily life looks like there. I wonder how they would behave if Russia attacked their country, and whether they would then make such decisions so quickly.”

Świderski had previously said he could not imagine Russian athletes competing in Polish cities, even if it meant losing the hosting rights.

Expanded Nations League

While the men's World Championship will proceed without Russia, both the men's and women's teams will take part in the 2027 Volleyball Nations League. FIVB confirmed they will enter as the highest-ranked teams not yet qualified. To avoid displacing Finland's men and Slovenia's women, who earned promotion on sporting merit, FIVB will expand the tournament from 18 to 19 teams for one season.

Poland's men won the 2026 VNL title for the second consecutive year, their third overall, making them the most successful team in the competition's history. Russia won the 2018 and 2019 editions. Turkey claimed the women's VNL title, while Poland's women finished ninth.

Women's World Championship still open

The women's World Championship is scheduled to take place in the United States and Canada. FIVB said it is continuing discussions with the organisers and the national federations of both host countries about possible Russian participation. No decision has yet been reached.