Georgi Bratoev

While it wasn't quite the massive 11,000+ crowd that saw co-hosts Italy kick off the tournament in Rome, injury-rattled Bulgaria kicked off play in Varna with a 3-0 win over Finland in front of 4,850 fans in the country's third-largest city: Varna.

#14 BULGARIA DEF. #18 FINLAND 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-22)

Bulgarian volleyball star Matey Kaziyski returned to the team of Diatec Trentino after spending a season at the Japanese JTEKT Stings.

The return of Kaziyski comes at a vital time just before the team faces Exprivia Molfetta in the play-offs in the Italian Super league on Thursday.