Sofia, Bulgaria, September 21, 2018 – The United States are in pursuit of their sixth consecutive win when they meet their North American rivals Canada in the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship.
Head-to-Head
• This is the sixth meeting at the World Championships between these countries. USA have won four of the previous five meetings (1974, 1978, 1998 and 2006) and Canada once (1990).
• The head-to-head at world level major tournaments is 12 victories for USA and four for Canada. Canada have won three of the last four.
• World level major tournaments are Nations League, Olympic Games, World Championship, World Cup, World League and Grand Champions Cup.
• These nations met twice in the NORCECA Championship final, with USA winning 3-1 in 2003 and 3-0 in 2013.
United States
• United States have won all five matches at the 2018 World Championship, against Serbia, Australia, Russia, Cameroon and Tunisia.
• Together with Italy and Poland they have won all five matches so far.
• United States could start their World Championship with six victories for the first time.
• They won six matches in total in each of the previous two World Championships (2010 and 2014).
• United States could win six World Championship matches in a row for the first time since eight between 1998 and 2002.
• Taylor Sander has 12 aces, which is most this tournament together with Mitja Gasparini (SLO) and Ivan Zaytsev (ITA).
• Micah Christenson has 211 running sets, only Harrison Peacock (AUS, 237) has more.
• Taylor Sander (42%) and Erik Shoji (41%) are the only receivers with an efficiency rate of more than 40% (all players).
Canada
• Canada started their 2018 World Championship campaign with three victories, before Brazil on Monday (3-1) and France on Tuesday (3-1) proved too strong.
• Canada could lose three matches in a row at the World Championship for the first time since four in a row in 2006.
• Steven Marshall has the most outstanding digs (45) and is the only player to have more than two outstanding digs per set on average (2.50).