In Katowice on Sunday night, the home team won the first set over Italy and had a three-point lead in the second, but that was as close as they would get to their third consecutive gold. The Italians proved to be the better team in the final, spoiled the Polish party and became the first country in history, after the Soviet Union, to claim four World Championship titles (1990, 1994, 1998 and 2022) in men’s volleyball. For Poland, the silver was their fifth medal in the competition. They won gold in 1974, 2014 and 2018, and another silver in 2006.