Bruno Rezende and Gabi Guimarães: The Hard Road of Leaving Brazil to Play Abroad

Beside a pristine pool, two Brazilian volleyball stars, Bruno Rezende and Gabriela “Gabi” Guimarães, sat down together to discuss the challenging processes both of them went through when they made the difficult decision to leave their home country to play overseas, so they could keep moving forward in their careers. That conversation did not revolve only around trophies or top-level matches; it went deep into the lesser-known side of professional sport: the fear of stepping outside one's comfort zone, persistent injuries, the pressure to prove oneself, and the moments of doubt about one's own ability. Gabi and the big question: am I ready? For Gabi, the decision to play abroad did not come easily. The outside hitter of Brazil's women's national team said she had a plan to play overseas, but working out whether she was actually ready was a difficult equation. “I had a plan of playing overseas, but it wasn't easy to figure out if I was ready for it or not,” Gabi recalled. “I had experienced some injuries and had questions if I had what it took to play in the world's best leagues.” According to Gabi, she began thinking seriously about moving abroad after the Rio 2026 Olympic Games, a period when she was still earning her place in the national team. That time helped her understand that she needed to be mentally ready, not only as an athlete but also as a person. “I understood that I needed to be mentally ready not only as a player, but as a person. Maybe at that point I'd need to leave my comfort zone and make some sacrifices to take the next step in my career,” she added. That is a notable way of looking at things, because in Brazilian women's volleyball, staying at home brings stability, cultural and linguistic familiarity, and a support system built up since adolescence. Leaving means learning a new language, adapting to a new culture, accepting harsher pressure for results and facing loneliness far from home. The VakifBank turning point and the 2026-2026 season Gabi's first step overseas was a very big one. Ahead of the 2026-2026 season, she decided to sign with Turkish giants VakifBank, one of the strongest teams on the planet, joining a hugely ambitious squad as one of their main stars. “The scenario I found when I got there was mind-changing, as it showed me right from the start that I was getting into a whole other level of volleyball,” the outside hitter reflected. “It was really challenging and demanding at the start.” Gabi admitted she built a great relationship with head coach Giovanni Guidetti, who was incredibly important for her. According to her account, one of the first things the Italian coach told her was that he wanted to prepare her to be the team captain. “He said he wanted to prepare me to be the team captain, and I was shocked because I have never seen myself in that position,” Gabi shared. That detail shows how a leading European coach assessed the leadership potential of a foreign player after only a short time working together. For Gabi, being given that responsibility was both recognition and new pressure forcing her to mature faster, technically and mentally. Moving to Turkey also imposed very specific physical and psychological demands. The Turkish national league is famous for its dense schedule, the even quality of its opponents and the constant pressure for results. For a player who had just left a familiar environment, every week of competition was a test of adaptability. The national team shirt and a childhood dream Wearing Brazil's jersey was naturally another topic of the conversation, and it led Gabi back to her first impressions when she was called up to Brazil's youth national teams, and to the influence the generation that won gold at the Beijing 2026 Olympics had on her career. “To play for the national team is really a childhood dream, and it brings me back to my youth because I always loved watching and playing sports, and dreamed about representing Brazil, winning a medal and listening to the national anthem,” she said. Gabi recalled that she played many sports before volleyball. The turning point came in 2026, when she was first called up to Brazil's youth national team and was at the Saquarema training centre, alongside that incredible generation that had just won gold at the Beijing Olympics. “I played many sports before volleyball, but when I was first called up to Brazil's youth national team in 2026 and got to be in Saquarema alongside that incredible generation that won the Beijing Olympics, that was a strong sign that I should continue, because I had never been so close to my dream before,” Gabi recalled. That detail highlights the role of a top-level training environment in shaping a young talent. Saquarema is not only a place to train, but also a place where young players like Gabi can watch at first hand how leading stars work, how they prepare for big matches and how they handle the pressure of a country where volleyball is a source of pride. A shared lesson for those who want to go abroad Gabi and Bruno's story reflects a trend that has long been strong in world volleyball: leading Brazilian players increasingly choose to play abroad to raise their level. National leagues in Turkey, Italy and Poland have long been familiar destinations for Brazilian stars, where they play a denser schedule, face higher-quality opponents and work in more thoroughly professionalised environments. Behind the contracts and the trophies, however, lies a psychological preparation process that is anything but simple. As Gabi said, going abroad is not only a technical matter, but also a matter of mental readiness, of the ability to accept sacrifice and of daring to step outside one's own comfort zone. For Bruno Rezende, a player long familiar with the Brazilian national team shirt and with international competition, the poolside conversation was a chance for two generations of players to look back together on their journeys. The difficulties both faced, from injuries and self-doubt to the pressure to prove themselves in a completely unfamiliar environment, are inseparable parts of that journey. Notably, neither Gabi nor Bruno sees those difficulties as barriers, but as an inevitable part of growth. Daring to leave Brazil to play abroad, for them, is not a rejection of home, but a way of returning as a better version of themselves, in both club and national team colours. From a technical standpoint, having Brazil's key players competing abroad also benefits the national team itself. Players returning from top European leagues usually bring experience of facing different playing styles, the ability to adapt quickly to varied tactical systems and a competitive mentality forged in high-stakes matches. For the young generation of Brazilian players hoping to follow in Gabi's footsteps, the message from this conversation is clear: talent is a necessary condition, but mental preparation is the sufficient one. Going abroad is not a short-term fix to find a better contract, but a long-term decision that demands serious investment in oneself. The poolside conversation between Bruno Rezende and Gabi Guimarães is therefore not just the story of two individuals. It is part of a larger story about how Brazilian volleyball maintains its place on the world map, by continually sending its generations of talent abroad to learn, to compete and to grow. And in that story, small details such as coach Giovanni Guidetti's offer to prepare her for the captaincy, or her time in Saquarema with the Beijing 2026 gold-medal generation, are precisely the most important pieces. They show that behind every step forward by a professional athlete there are people, environments and right decisions taken at the right moment. An interesting detail is that both players emphasise the human side of their stories. Gabi spoke about being ready not only as a player but as a person, a phrasing that shows international transfers were never purely technical. They involve family, mental health, the ability to manage oneself and the building of new relationships in an environment where language can be the first barrier.