HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. (June 17, 2011) - Playing FIVB World League matches against Poland in Hoffman Estates, Ill., is something the USA Volleyball staff had hoped we would see.

It’s one of those matches we always thought would attract a lot of excitement for the fans, the teams, the media and, quite frankly for us.

Just after I started as a media and communications manager for USA Volleyball in 2006, the U.S. Women’s National Team played Poland at a different arena in the Chicago area and although I did not get to attend, I’ve always heard about how mobbed the place was and the exciting atmosphere.

So after three years of coming to Hoffman Estates, just outside of Chicago, and playing Bulgaria (2008), Italy (2009) and Finland (2010), we are finally playing Poland and expecting near sellout crowds both nights. There have been rumors of fans buying 500 tickets at a time.

Photo: Copyrighted by USAV/B.J. Evans Members of the Polish men's team sign autographs for fans after practice on June 16 in Hoffman Estates, Ill. The Sears Centre Arena can hold approximately 8,000 fans, which would be a really nice crowd for men’s volleyball in the United States.

I’ve also had more requests for press credentials than ever before.

Just one problem, of course; the majority of these fans will be wearing red and white without the blue and rooting for Poland. I had suggested handing out blue towels with white stars to everyone as they walk in the door, but I was told that unless I was going to pay for it, it wasn’t going to happen.

The media is also mostly Polish, though I’ve also received requests from the Tribune and the NBC affiliate.

So our guys are the underdogs at what is supposed to be a “home” match. But they are good sports about it. If you ask them, they will just say “We’re used to it. We like the challenge.”

But of course we all wish we could get that many fans rooting for the U.S. team in the United States. It’s the goal we all keep working toward every day.

And we keep thinking about other matches and cities we’d like to see. What about the U.S. versus Japan in Honolulu? I can dream, can’t I?