Outdoor Volleyball Rules

Current FIVB/USAV outdoor volleyball rules apply along with the clarifications found in this UOVA Tournament Format and Rule Clarifications document. Some of the recent changes adopted are explained below:

  1. 2015 – Juniors division is limited to those age 15 or younger. Age 17 and under still qualify for the free Juniors Membership but anyone over 15 will need to play in the standard divisions (Novice, B, A, AA, Open).
  2. Contact with any part of the net is a violation at any time – even if the ball is “down” first.
  3. 2013 – All Doubles divisions will be played on the shorter courts (8m x 8m) with antennae.  The “let serve” where the ball can touch the net on a serve is legal in all divisions.
  4. 2016 – Parent-Child Recreation Division Rule Clarifications: This division is open to any gender parent and child (age 17 and under). This division will be played on women’s height nets.The parent-child division is for the purpose of the child to have a positive experience and to get as many touches on the ball as possible. It is not for the purpose of the parent to dominate the match. As our children get bigger, and they express an interest in the sport of volleyball, we want to give them a division that they can participate in and not feel intimidated. That is why the parent-child division was developed. In order to put the adults on a level playing field and for the safety of the children, adults may not contact the ball, above the height of the net, when the ball is attacked. This includes legal tipping, roll shots, and setting the ball over when the ball is above the height of the net. The adults also may not block. There are no restrictions on serving. However, it is recommended that if the adult serves the child they do so at the child’s skill level. To eliminate the competitiveness of the Parent-Child division, there will be no prizes awarded to the winning teams. This division will only have two rounds of pool play and will not have any kind of elimination tournament. All the children who participate will receive a small prize. If you want to compete for better prizes please consider playing in one of the other divisions such as Novice or B.
  5. 2022 – Players must advance to the next highest division after his/her FIRST win in an any division with 6 or more teams and 2nd place must also advance if the division had 12 or more teams: Novice, B, and A. This applies to Men’s, Women’s, and Coed tournaments. Players are NOT required to advance from AA on the grass to Open on the sand.
  6. The top 10 teams at the end of the season (top 20 for Men’s Open) must play in that division or higher in the next season.
  7. 2009 – Those that earned points in a division that were not in the top 10 (top 20 for Men’s Open) may drop down only 1 division for the next season. Click HERE for more details.
  8. Rally scoring will be used in all divisions. The Tournament Director has the discretion to set the length of games. UOVA suggests that pools of 4 teams or less play two games rally scoring to 25. Pools of 5 teams play two games, rally scoring to 21 points. Pools of 6 or more play one game rally scoring to 30 points