ALAS Pilipinas’ five-set thriller against Iran produced the highest attendance in an FIVB event hosted by the Philippines in the last three years.
READ: Iran ousts brave Alas Men from FIVB Worlds in five-set thriller
A total of 14,240 fans flocked to the Mall of Asia Arena to witness the Nationals’ heartbreaking yet gallant stand that nearly led to a breakthrough Round of 16 appearance.
As such, it became the most-watched game of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship so far and the first to eclipse the 10,000-mark.
For Alas games at the Mall of Asia Arena, its opening loss to Tunisia had 9,245 fans, while its historic win over Egypt was held to a meager crowd count of 6,043.
“Sobrang nakaka-proud na maging Pilipino kung ganito yung mga sumusuporta sa amin,” said team captain Bryan Bagunas.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa kanila kasi nabu-boost nila kami sa loob ng court. Hindi namin na-expect na susuportahan talaga kami.”
Ticket to greatness
Clutch efforts on pricing tickets at marked-down rates, sold below the P10,000-mark, paved the way for more spectators to afford watching games live.
The previous record was set by Japan and USA’s pool play finale in the 2024 Volleyball Nations League that had 12,424 fans pack the modern venue in Pasay.
Of the six prior games to have over 10,000 fans watch live, five featured a Japanese side that has now been eliminated from the FIVB Worlds.
The only other game that did not have Japan, apart from Alas Men vs. Iran, was France’s five-set comeback win over Brazil in VNL 2024 with 10,593 fans, still at the MOA Arena.
The discounted tickets are only set for the group stage, as prices are expected to return to regular rates for the knockout stage,
This, according to Philippine National Volleyball Federation president Ramon ‘Tats’ Suzara, is to honor those who already bought tickets beforehand even without knowing which teams would make it to the Round of 16.
“It’s unfair kasi for people who bought tickets, marami nang bumili ng ticket for quarterfinals to the final kahit hindi pa alam kung sinong aabot, but they bought already,” Suzara said.
“Unfair naman yun. Yung iba, daldal nang daldal, baka hindi nga nanonood yun. But the volleyball fan, pupunta talaga para manood.”
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