1st Day of Saforelle Volstar: Mulhouse and Levallois Claim Wins

Defending champions Mulhouse opened the Saforelle Volstar season with a 3-1 victory against Nantes on Saturday. The French volleyball champions travelled to face the Neptunes, who returned to the highest national level this season, and secured the win despite conceding a single set, with set scores of 25-21, 21-25, 25-18, and 25-20.

Levallois Paris and Évreux Secure Impressive Openers

Levallois Paris, who finished as runners-up last season, also started the new campaign strongly by defeating RC Cannes 3-0 with set scores of 25-22, 25-21, and 25-20 in the Championnat de France. The Mariannes 92 are competing this season without Alessandro Orefice, who led them to titles in 2024 and 2025 and was replaced over the summer on the bench by Kris Vansnick. RC Cannes featured French players Eva Elouga (21 points), Lilou Ratahiry (8 points), and Eva Cohen (10 points) during their difficult opening match.

Earlier in the afternoon, France Avenir and Évreux initiated the season. The Norman side easily defeated the young French players 3-0 (25-10, 25-18, 26-24), allowing Évreux to take command of the standings alongside Levallois Paris.

Tight Battles in Evening Fixtures

Several other matches during the Saturday evening slate required extended play to determine a winner. Terville-Florange went to a tie-break to overcome Le Cannet 3-2, recording set scores of 22-25, 25-14, 25-15, 20-25, and 17-15. Chamalières similarly needed a tie-break to defeat Saint-Dié-des-Vosges 3-2 with set scores of 25-18, 20-25, 25-19, 18-25, and 16-14. Meanwhile, Vandoeuvre rebounded after dropping the first set against Bordeaux to claim a 3-1 victory, bouncing back with set scores of 24-26, 25-14, 25-14, and 25-23.