Thailand fall 1-3 to Japan in Women’s VNL Week 3 clash in Osaka

Thailand’s women’s national volleyball team suffered a 1-3 defeat to Japan in Week 3 of the FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League 2026 in Osaka on Thursday.

Led by head coach Kiattipong Radchatagriengkai, Thailand went down to the hosts 15-25, 21-25, 25-22, 22-25 in their latest preliminary-round match at the Osaka leg.

Thailand fight back but Japan seal four-set win

Japan took control early, winning the first two sets 25-15 and 25-21 to put Thailand under heavy pressure.

Thailand responded strongly in the third set, edging Japan 25-22 to keep the match alive.

However, Japan held firm in the fourth set, taking it 25-22 to close out a 3-1 victory over the Thai side.

Osaka leg leaves Thailand under pressure

The match was part of Women’s VNL 2026 Week 3 in Osaka, where Thailand are facing a difficult run of fixtures against the United States, Japan, Brazil and Türkiye. The official VNL schedule listed Japan versus Thailand as a Pool 9, Week 3 match in Osaka on July 9.

Thailand entered the final week of the preliminary round still needing results to strengthen their position in the standings. Before the Osaka leg, Thailand had two wins, six defeats and nine points from eight matches, leaving them 14th in the table.

Brazil await in next match

Thailand’s next match in the FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League 2026 will be against Brazil on July 11 at 1.30pm Thailand time.

The Osaka schedule also includes Thailand’s final preliminary-round match against Türkiye on July 12.