Portugal bowed out of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship after falling to Bulgaria in the Round of 16, but the team chose to focus on the positives.
This marked the Southern Europeans’ first appearance in the global tournament in 23 years, with their last coming in 2002.
For head coach João José, simply advancing from a stacked Pool D into the knockout phase was already a major achievement.
“I think our performance was pretty good, and today we also played well. We faced a strong Bulgaria team,” said José on Monday, after Portugal’s 25-19, 25-23, 25-13 defeat to their fellow Europeans.
“When we look back, we have to appreciate what we’ve done here and identify the things we need to improve.”
Entering the competition as World No. 29, Portugal announced its return to the world stage in stunning fashion by upsetting World No. 10 Cuba in its opening match, 20-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-19.
Although they fell to the USA in their next outing, the Portuguese displayed resilience by pulling off a reverse sweep against Colombia in their final pool match, which secured them a place in the Round of 16.
With their campaign now over, José feels determined to build on Portugal’s resurgence in men’s volleyball — something the nation has struggled to sustain in the past.
Portugal first competed at the World Championship in 1956 but missed the next 11 editions before qualifying again in 2002. Another long drought followed until this year’s breakthrough.
“If we want to improve, we must aim to be on this stage again in the next two years so we can compete, learn, and get better,” said José, who was named Best Blocker during Portugal’s 2002 campaign.
“I think expectations will be higher moving forward, but we also have to stay realistic about what we can achieve,” he added.
“Our goal now is to perform well at the European Championship next year and earn qualification to return here in the coming years. Until then, we must keep working hard to stay at this level and continue improving.”
