Volleyball is a sport played all-year around. Today, we’re going to take a look at the most important volleyball competitions and explain in what month is their seasons.
When is volleyball season?
| Type of competition | Season duration |
|---|---|
| International Volleyball | May-October |
| Club Volleyball | September-May |
| Beach Volleyball | May-August |
| College Volleyball | September-May |
| High School Volleyball | August-November/March-May |
| Snow Volleyball | December-August |
How Long is an international volleyball season?
Let’s begin with probably the most important type of competition which is an international volleyball season.
The international volleyball season includes only national teams. There are a couple of tournaments and competitions during the season, which doesn’t last longer than 6 months. The most important are:
The Olympic Games: It’s the most prestigious tournament, not only in volleyball but in 27 other disciplines. A medal of the Olympic Games is priceless. Typically, the Olympic Games lasts 2 weeks. The Olympic Games in 2016 lasted from August 5th up until August 21st. But in most cases, we can assume that the Olympic Games take place between June and August, so do volleyball games at this tournament. The same dates apply to men’s and women’s volleyball. We should remember that this sports event happens every 4 years. The best national teams in volleyball you can find in this post.
The World Championships: Like the Olympic Games, the World Championships also take place once every 4 years. For some people, this competition is even more valuable than the others, because some teams get ready for it more seriously. Anyway, how long does it last? The Men’s World Championship lasts from August to September, usually 3 weeks. For example, the Championships in 2014 lasted from 30 August to 21 September and in 2018 from 9 September to 30 September. The Women’s World Championships take place in the same years, right after the end of the men’s Championships, and lasts the same amount of time. In 2014, this tournament took place from 23 September to 12 October, and in 2018 from 29 September to 20 October.
The World Championship finals since 1990.
The World Cup: This tournament for years is held in Japan and happen every 4 years, but always one year after the World Championships and the Olympic Games. The Women’s version of the World Cup always takes place first and it lasts about 2 weeks and throughout this time, each team needs to play 11 matches. In 2015, the Women’s World Cup was from 22 August to 6 September, and in 2019, from 14 to 29 September. The Men’s World Cup starts 1 or 2 days afterward. Who’s the best female volleyball player? Find it out here.
The European Championships: This competition is more frequent and it takes place every 2 years. The level of matches, especially in the knockout stage is pretty high. The Women’s tournament is first and it typically starts either in August or in early September and lasts a bit more than 2 weeks. The Men’s European Championship starts a couple of days after the women’s final.
The Volleyball Nations League: This tournament was established in 2017 and it replaced the World League. The Nations League lasts about 1.5 months from the middle of May until early July. At this time all teams play different mini-tournaments. The best 2 teams from each group play in the semi-final. The Women’s Nations League happens simultaneously.
Other Tournaments: There are also tournaments including the South American Volleyball Championship (August/September), the Pan American Games (July-October), Asian Volleyball Championship 9 (July-September), the Asian Games (August-October).
When is club volleyball season?
The club volleyball season includes a couple of international tournaments, domestic leagues, and domestic cups. It usually happens from fall to late spring.
The most popular international tournaments are:
The FIVB Volleyball Club World Championship: It’s a short tournament that takes place somewhere at the end of the year in December and doesn’t last longer than a week. The 4 teams that participate, are the best Asian team, the best South American team, and 2 best European teams. It’s been played every year since 2009 and it’s dominated by men’s and women’s European and South American Clubs.
The CEV Champions League: It’s a long and very prestigious competition. The winners are usually called the best volleyball club in the world. If you want to know the best current volleyball clubs, go to this article. Men and Women play nearly at the same time. The qualifications start about October and the first match of the Champions League starts at the beginning of December, while the final is being played 5 months later.
Domestic competitions: It’s domestic leagues, supercups, and cups. The best leagues like Polish PlusLiga, Russian Super League, Italian Legea, or Brazilian Superleague start most seasons start in October and finish in May. Cups and Supercups are being played in November and December. Which league is the best in the world? Find it out here.
Is beach volleyball only in the summer?
Beach volleyball isn’t as popular as indoor volleyball, because it’s less attractive and predictable.
But do you think the season is only in the summer?
Beach volleyball tournaments happen all year long. For example, in January there are some tournaments in Iran, Cook Islands, and in November in Thailand. You know, the summer is always somewhere. As a rule of thumb, we should know that all minor tournaments outside Europe, Brazil, and the USA can be held at any season.
But the most important competitions take place from May to October.
For example, the World Championship that take place usually from June to August in Europe, Brazil or the USA once every 2 years. The best men’s and women’s team is Brazil, having won 19 gold medals. There is also the European Championship in the same months since 1993.
It’s worth mentioning the FIVB World Tour. It’s the most prestigious and most affordable tournament in beach volleyball. It’s held from May to August. During this time, there are many smaller tournaments where players compete to play in the final at the end of the season.
Beach volleyball is an Olympic discipline. That means we can watch a beach volleyball game in June/August.
What months are college volleyball season?
College volleyball is quite popular, especially in the USA. The level of competition is high and some matches are really thrilling.
The first matches of the season typically start in the last days of August and end in December.
The men’s college volleyball starts in January at the beginning of the semester and ends in April or May.
When is high school volleyball season?
There is not any specific time frame for high school or middle school volleyball. It all depends on the region where you live.
However, there is a high possibility that the season might start in September and end in October or start in March and finish in May. These are the most common time frames for high and middle schools.
It’s the best to get to know at the official website of a certain school.
You can guess in what months beach volleyball is played
Most of the people reading this article don’t know that something like snow ball even exists. Yes, it does and it’s getting more popular. If you’d like to get to know more surprising volleyball facts, read this post.
Snow volleyball was invented in the late 90s and it’s been more popular since 2008. Since 2011 it’s an official sport. The rules are almost the same as in beach volleyball.
There aren’t many tournaments held in this type of volleyball. One of the most famous ones was in 2012 organized by 5 countries. Of course in the winter. This sport might appear in the Winter Olympic Games in the future.
In 2019 FIVB Snow Volleyball World Tour was created. First tournaments were held in Austria, Italy, and Argentina from… April to August in the mountains where the snow is available all year long.
Do you have a moment? These post might be interesting for you:
