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The rules of volleyball, how they changed, and the competitions the game is played in.

Every serve became a point
The let serve, and other small rewrites
What the jump serve did to everything else
The touch that is not a touch

She may not attack, may not block, may not serve in rotation
The shirt that tells the referee
What a defensive specialist costs you

Legal at the whistle. After that, anywhere.
The overlap fault
Five-one, six-two, and why a team picks one

04Where it is played

The Nations League, and the summer the world sees
The NCAA, three divisions and a stadium record
The clubs, where the season actually happens
Beach is a different sport
Names on the record, with the year attached

All fifteen guides — the archiveAbout · Contact

Legal at the whistle, then anywhere

Six players and one legal order.

An indoor court from directly above showing player positions — Legal at the whistle, then anywhereFrom above the order is obvious for exactly one instant: the moment of service contact.

3 guides in this section

Legal at the whistle. After that, anywhere.Six players must be in a legal order at service and are then free to move, which is why the game looks chaotic and is not.
The overlap faultPositional faults are judged at the instant of contact, and a team can be penalised for standing still.
Five-one, six-two, and why a team picks oneThe number of setters a system uses decides how many front-row attackers are available in each rotation.

Every guide on the site →

Frames from this section

Court line markings photographed close on a wooden floor — The lines decide the fault.

A tactics board with magnetic markers on a court-shaped grid — How many setters decides how many attackers.

The other sections

Every serve became a point She may not attack, may not block, may not serve The best players are not where you think

VolleyCentral

Volley Central covers the rules of volleyball, how they changed, and the competitions the game is played in.

Every serve became a point She may not attack, may not block, may not serve Legal at the whistle, then anywhere The best players are not where you think

The archive About Contact

volleycentral.com