Intense Battle Begins for a Spot at the 2026 FIVB

U17 Girls’ World Championship

At least one berth to the FIVB 2026 World Championship will go to the NORCECA champion. The FIVB will confirm at a later date the total number of participating teams and, consequently, the number of qualification spots available to NORCECA.

Sam Lam, Head Coach of Canada: “We had our first practice together this morning. The players loved the environment in the gym when we walked in. As far as expectations this week, we just want to get better every day. It’s the first time the players have worn the Canada flag on their uniforms, and we are looking for them to grow throughout the tournament. There’s going to be great competition, and we are looking forward to it”.

Kareem Richards, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “There are no words to describe the excitement we feel having an event of this magnitude in our country. The team is highly motivated and well-prepared. We know all the teams are also well-prepared since this tournament grants spots to the World Championship. We see it as a great opportunity to deliver a pleasant surprise. Our expectation is to finish as high as possible in the rankings.”

Carina Menes, Head Coach of Cuba: “The team has been preparing for two months. We haven’t had any friendly matches, but we’re going to fight to finish among the top three teams in the group to advance to the next round. It won’t be an easy task because it’s a very strong group, but the players are eager to win matches. Their confidence level is very high.”

Marcelo Cezarano, Head Coach of the Dominican Republic: “This is the first competition for eleven players, they’ve never played internationally and are very eager. The team is doing well and training hard. We had difficulties training due to Hurricane Melisa, so each player worked from home. We lost a very important middle blocker to injury, but we’re moving forward. We’re aiming to qualify for the World Championship. Hopefully, everything goes well, especially for the players so they can gain valuable playing experience.”

Migdael Ruiz Juárez, Head Coach of Mexico: “We carry a great responsibility as defending champions of the event. The team is well-prepared, with new faces and a lot of desire, though also some nervousness. It’s my first event as head coach, and I’m very excited.”

Ernesto Ricolt Vega, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “Our goal is to earn a spot at the World Championship. We’ve worked as much as possible, and the team has trained hard. We hope to do a good job.”

Claudius Straal, Head Coach of Suriname: “We’re feeling confident. We just came from winning the CAZOVA Under-17 Championship. We hope our performance can take us to the next round of the event. We are looking to qualify for the World Championship which will be the first time a team from Suriname has done so”.

Tayyiba Haneef-Park,, Head Coach of United States: “We had a week of training in Colorado Springs, and we are very excited about this competition. Being our first Under-17 NORCECA, we are just happy to compete with some other really great national teams, and we hope to earn some points towards the World Championship. Our goal is always to win, but also to have a good competition and represent our country. We have amazing young girls and just giving them the experience of what it means to play international is a great steppingstone”.