🏐 Stuff Every Volleyball Player Should Know: Training Guide

Teams and the three-hit rule

Indoor volleyball teams put six players on the court at the same time. Three players stand in the front row and three stand in the back row. A team may list up to 12 players for a match, and some major competitions allow up to 14.

A team may touch the ball up to three times before it must go back over the net. A fourth hit is a fault called four hits. Many teams use bump, set, spike because that uses all three hits in a useful order.

One player may not hit the ball two times in a row. Another player must touch the ball in between. A block is the main exception because it does not count as one of the team's hits.

A block touch is not counted as a team hit in indoor volleyball. If your blocker touches a spike, your team still has three hits to send the ball back over the net.

After a block touch, any player may make the next hit, even the blocker who just touched the ball. That next hit does not count as a double hit. When two or three blockers jump together, it is called a collective block.

Rally scoring and winning sets

Volleyball uses rally scoring, so every rally ends with a point. The team that wins the rally scores whether it served or not. The rally winner also earns the right to serve next.

In indoor volleyball, the first four sets are played to 25 points. A team must also lead by at least two points to win the set. Beach volleyball uses different target scores, as you will see later.

When a set is tied at 24 to 24, play continues. The set does not end on the next point. Teams keep playing until one side leads by two, so the final score could be 26 to 24 or higher.

If a match is tied at two sets each, the fifth set is shorter. It is played to 15 points, and the winner still must lead by two. Teams switch sides in that fifth set when the leading team reaches 8 points.

An indoor match is won by the first team to win three sets. That means a match can last three, four, or five sets. The break between sets is called an interval.

Rotation order

When the receiving team wins a rally and earns the serve, its players rotate one spot clockwise. The player moving from front right to back right becomes the server. Court positions are numbered 1 to 6, with position 1 at the back right.

The receiving team must be in its correct rotation spots at the exact moment the server hits the ball. The serving team's players may stand anywhere on their court at that moment. After the service hit, both teams may move anywhere on their own court and free zone.

For the receiving team, the referee judges a player's position by where their feet last touched the floor. Shoulders, hands, and leaning do not decide an overlap.

If the wrong player serves out of rotation order, that is a rotational fault. The other team gets a point, and the serving order is corrected.

Serving rules

At the moment of the serve, or the take-off for a jump serve, the server must not touch the court, including the end line. After the hit, the server may land inside the court. The service zone is 9 meters wide behind the end line.

After the referee blows the whistle, the server gets a limited time window. The limit is 8 seconds. If the server waits longer, the referee calls a fault and the other team earns a point.

A server may bounce or move the ball in their hands before tossing, but only one toss or release is allowed. Then the server must hit the ball with one hand or arm.

Blocking the other team's serve is not allowed. A receiving player also cannot attack the serve in the front zone if the ball is entirely above the top of the net.

Court size and the center line

The whole indoor court is 18 meters long and 9 meters wide. The attack line is 3 meters from the center line, and the area between them is the front zone.

The center line splits the court into two equal halves. Your foot may touch the other team's court if some part of it stays on or directly above the center line. It must not interfere with the other team.

The court lines are part of the court. If any part of the ball touches a line when it lands, the ball is in. All court lines are 5 centimeters wide.

Net rules and crossing space

The top of the net for men's volleyball is 2.43 meters high. It is measured from the center of the court. The net height over both side lines must be exactly the same.

For women's volleyball, the top of the net is 2.24 meters high. The net is 1 meter tall from top to bottom.

The antennas are flexible rods at the sides of the net. A ball that touches an antenna is out, and the other team wins the rally.

The ball must cross the net inside the crossing space: above the net, below the ceiling, and between the antennas and their imaginary extension. Going around an antenna does not count.

Touching the net between the antennas while playing the ball is a fault. Playing the ball includes your take-off, the hit or attempt, and your landing. Touching the posts or the net outside the antennas is fine if it does not interfere with play.

If your pass goes into the net, your team can still play it, as long as you have hits left. If the ball rips or tears down the net, the rally is cancelled and played again.

Legal ball contact

Players must strike the ball so it rebounds quickly. If the ball seems to stop or rest on the body, the referee calls a catch, which is also called a lift. This prevents players from holding or throwing the ball.

A dig is legal if the ball touches any part of the body. The rules allow contact with any body part as long as the ball is not caught or thrown. The ball can even bounce off a foot.

On your team's first hit, the ball may touch different parts of the body in one action. On other hits, that would be a double contact. This lets players dig hard spikes that hit an arm and then a shoulder.

Key player positions

The setter is the playmaker who runs the offense. This player touches the ball on almost every play and decides who gets to attack. Before each serve, the setter often signals which set each hitter will attack.

When the setter is in the front row, the setter usually plays the right front spot, position 2. From there the setter often blocks the other team's outside hitter.

The outside hitter usually attacks from the left front, zone 4. Setters usually set from the right side, so a right-handed outside hitter hits the ball on the strong side.

The middle blocker plays at the center of the net, zone 3. On defense the middle blocker slides from the middle to help block at either side.

The libero

The libero is a defensive specialist and must wear a uniform with a different main color from the rest of the team. This makes the libero easy for referees to track.

Under FIVB rules the libero may not serve, block, or even try to block. The libero who is on the court is called the Acting Libero.

A libero may not complete an attack hit from anywhere if the whole ball is above the top of the net at contact. If part of the ball is below the net top, the height restriction does not apply.

Libero replacements are not counted as substitutions and are unlimited. There must be a completed rally between two libero replacements, and only one libero may be on the court at any time.

Attack and block rules

An attack hit is any action that sends the ball to the opponent, except a serve or block. A soft tip toward the other side counts as an attack hit, not just a hard spike.

A back-row player can still spike high, but only if the jump starts behind the attack line. The take-off foot cannot be on or over the line. After jumping, the player may land in the front zone.

Blocking is a job for the three players in the front row. A back-row player cannot block or be part of a block that touches the ball; doing so is a fault. A block also requires the player to reach above the net top.

Basic skills

The forearm pass, or bump, uses the forearms as a flat platform. Join your thumbs side by side and play the ball between the wrists and elbows. It is one of the most common ways to receive a serve and send the ball to the setter.

A set is an overhead pass with both hands open, played just above the forehead with the thumbs and fingertips. The setter sends the ball to an attacker to hit over the net. A set and an overhead pass use the same motion, but a set is aimed at a hitter.

A dig often uses the forearms, but the rules allow contact with any part of the body. The ball must not be caught or thrown, so the dig has to be a clean bounce.

A float serve is hit with little or no spin, like a knuckleball in baseball. Without spin the ball can dart and wobble, making it hard to pass. A good jump float crosses the net by only a foot or two.

A jump serve means the server leaves the ground before striking the ball. The serve can have spin or be a floating jump serve. The server cannot touch the court or end line when taking off.

Beach volleyball differences

A beach volleyball team has exactly two players, and both must always be in play. Each player has to pass, set, and attack, so there are many touches for each athlete.

In FIVB beach volleyball, the first two sets are played to 21 points. A team must win by at least two points.

If a beach match goes to a deciding third set, that set is played to 15 points with a two-point lead. A beach match is won by the first team to win two sets.

Beach teams switch sides every 7 points in the first two sets. In a deciding third set they switch every 5 points. During a court switch the teams must change right away, and the score stays the same.

In beach volleyball, an open-handed finger tip attack is a fault. A tip is legal only if the fingertips are rigid and together. It is also a fault to attack the other team's serve while the ball is entirely above the net.

A beach volleyball court is 16 meters long and 8 meters wide. That is smaller than the indoor court of 18 by 9 meters.

History

William G. Morgan invented volleyball in 1895 at the YMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts. He thought basketball was too strenuous for older men. In 1985 Morgan became the first member of the Volleyball Hall of Fame.

The first game was called Mintonette and was played in December 1895. That first game had no limit on players per side, and each side could hit the ball as many times as it liked.

The sport was renamed volley ball because the object was to volley the ball back and forth over the net. The name was two words, volley ball, until it became one word in 1952.

Volleyball appeared at Paris 1924 as a demonstration, but it became an official Olympic medal sport at Tokyo 1964. That year had men's and women's tournaments.

Beach volleyball made its Olympic debut at the Atlanta 1996 Games. It has been played at every Summer Games since.

Injury and sun safety

A simple home routine for a mild ankle sprain includes rest, ice, compression, and elevation. This can ease pain and swelling. If pain or swelling is severe, you should see a doctor. Elevating the ankle above heart level during the first two days helps.

Jumper's knee is the common name for patellar tendinitis. It is inflammation in the tendon that links the kneecap to the shinbone. It often appears in sports with frequent jumping. If knee pain does not go away, see a doctor.

Balance and strength exercises help reduce ankle sprains. Warming up thoroughly helps too. AAOS says good muscle strength, balance, and flexibility are the best prevention.

Before playing outside, use a broad spectrum sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher. Broad spectrum means it blocks UVA and UVB rays. UV rays reach you on cloudy days and reflect off sand.

On a hot day, stay in the shade when you can, take breaks, and drink plenty of fluids. Heavy sweating, dizziness, and cramps are signs of overheating. Light yellow or clear urine usually means you are drinking enough water.