The expectations are there – but the results are not. VC Wiesbaden wanted to get off to a positive start in the second half of the 2025/2026 season of the 1st Women's Volleyball Bundesliga. At least against their opponents from Dresden and Erfurt, that went badly wrong. How did the Hessians respond in Weissach, Baden-Württemberg? There they faced a team that is not yet playing under professional conditions – Binder Blaubären TSV Flacht. And as favorites, they suffered another bitter defeat, losing 1:3 (25:21, 23:25, 21:25, 19:25). As a result, VCW continues to slip down the table. Of the established teams, only Erfurt is behind the Wiesbaden team, followed by the three promoted teams, which are already a little behind.

Following the away defeat at newly promoted Flacht, their third clear defeat in a row, VCW has made a personnel decision in the coaching team of the first division team and has parted ways with head coach Tigin Yağlioğlu by mutual agreement with immediate effect. Until further notice, sporting director Benedikt Frank will take over the head coach position. He was head coach from 2021 to 2024 and is now returning to this position, at least for the time being. The search for a new Bundesliga coach has already begun.

The VCW will not play again until Saturday, February 14, at 5:15 p.m., when they host VfB Suhl Lotto Thüringen. They will then be led by their new and former coach Benedikt Frank. The Thuringians have developed into a real top team in the league and are currently second in the table. The outlook is not rosy for VCW, as their form in the last game means their chances of scoring points are less than ideal. But perhaps the team can use the break until mid-February to improve their form with their new (interim) coach.

And just two days after the 0:3 defeat against Dresden, VCW Uhr was the guest of Schwarz-Weiß Erfurt, who were close behind them in the table, and actually wanted to win. But in the end, they suffered a bitter 0:3 defeat (17:25, 21:25, 16:25), with Rene Sain and his teammates putting in a particularly weak performance in the first and third sets. As a result, they will soon drop to eighth place in the table, with only the three promoted teams behind them.

Dresdner SC lived up to its reputation as a top team – German Cup winner, Super Cup winner and Champions League participant – in the sports hall at Platz der Deutschen Einheit. Nearly 1,400 fans saw superior guests and a VCW that had actually planned to put up much more resistance. After just 58 minutes, the 0-3 defeat (15-25, 15-25, 17-15) was sealed. VCW must now pick up points against teams in its immediate vicinity – such as Schwarz-Weiß Erfurt – in order to move further up the table. 

• Outside attack: Dagmar Boom, Pleun van der Pijl (both Netherlands), Cayetana López Rey (Spain), Jovana Dordević (Serbia / Germany)
• Diagonal: Jimena Fernández Gayoso (Spain)
• Middle block: Laura Broekstra, Hannah Clayton (USA), Marlene Rieger (Germany)
• Set: Sanne Konijnenberg (Netherlands), Hanna Weinmann (Germany)
• Libera: Rene Sain (Croatia)

In addition to the VCW, the following teams will be in the Bundesliga 1 in the 2025/26 season: Ladies in Black Aachen, Skurios Volleys Borken (promoted), Dresdner SC, Schwarz-Weiß Erfurt, Binder Blaubären TSV Flacht (promoted), SC Potsdam (withdrawn from the league), VfB Suhl LOTTO Thüringen, USC Münster, Allianz MTV Stuttgart, SSC Palmberg Schwerin and ETV Hamburger Volksbank Volleys (promoted). Potsdam returned its license during the summer.