NVB had an intense year in 2024. Between battling for survival and the desire to turn things around, a reflection on the 2024 season of the Eagles.
A complicated end of the 2023-2024 season for NVB
At the start of 2024, the Nice team fought to avoid relegation. In 12th place in the standings, the Nice team urgently needed to accumulate points to stay in the Marmara SpikeLigue. Thus, to ensure their survival, a victory against Narbonne (3-0), a direct competitor, on February 10th, provided a breath of fresh air. But eventually, the Eagles secured their stay a month later, with two consecutive wins against Plessis-Robinson (3-1) and Saint-Jean d’Illac (3-0).
However, the defeat against Toulouse in the season finale (1-3), one of the best teams in Ligue A, highlighted the limits of the Eagles against top teams. Additionally, there was no victory against the eight teams that qualified for the playoffs (Chaumont, Nantes-Rezé, Tourcoing, Tours, Montpellier, Toulouse, Saint-Nazaire, Paris).
NVB starts well in 2024-2025
After an offseason marked by the arrival of new players and a new coach, NVB approached the 2024-2025 season with new ambitions. From the very first match, on September 29th, 2024, a solid victory against Toulouse (3-1) demonstrated the progress made. In October, the Nice team experienced mixed results, securing an important victory against Paris (3-0) but suffering a frustrating loss against Montpellier (2-3), where they let slip a closely contested tie-break.
Moreover, in the French Cup, the Eagles were eliminated in the first round. Facing their Cannes neighbors, the Nice team was defeated 3 sets to 1. A major disappointment after reaching the round of 16 in 2024 and a final in 2023.
NVB hopes for the playoffs
As of now, Nice is 7th in the championship with 19 points, 12 points behind the leader, Tourcoing. Furthermore, to hope to reach the playoffs, NVB will need to be consistent. Although the team has proven it can compete with the best, it will have to avoid slumps. Mistakes that come at a high cost in such a competitive league. Additionally, they’ll need to strengthen their defensive (Nice has the 7th best defense in the championship) and offensive bases (Nice has the 9th best attack in the championship). The year 2025 presents an opportunity to return to the playoffs. Nice has competed three times (semifinalist in 2017 and 2019, quarter-finalist in 2022) since its return to the top division in 2016.
