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It can be challenging to keep track of the many volleyball leagues and their season start and end dates. You might be wondering, when is volleyball season, and why do different leagues have different start dates?
When Is Volleyball Season?
Volleyball is played all year round because of the different seasons for the various levels and leagues. For example, high school volleyball is played from August through November for women and March through May for men. The FIVB world championships are from August to September and beach volleyball is played May through August.
There are as many different seasons of volleyball as there are levels of play. Let’s explore when the most popular types of volleyball are happening.
Professional Indoor Volleyball
There are several different leagues of professional volleyball, making it difficult to pin down typical season start and end dates. With so many different regulations, you can expect some professional indoor volleyball all year round. Below are the seasons for popular professional leagues and the countries they operate in.
- U.S. National Volleyball Association (NVA): March – July
- U.S. Volleyball League of America (VLA): January – July
- Russia Volleyball Super League (VSL): September – April
- Philippines Premier League Open (PLO): August – October
- Italy SuperLega: September – April
- Brazil SuperLiga: November – April
International (FIVB) Volleyball
An important subset of professional volleyball is the International Federation of Volleyball (FIVB). These professional athletes represent their country when playing, and the world championships are broadcast in 112 different countries. In addition to the world championship, the FIVB has a nation’s league season annually.
For women, FIVB nations league is from May to July, and the World Championship is from August through September. For men, the nations league starts after the women’s league ends in July and lasts until September. Like women, the men’s world championship season goes from August to September.
Beach Volleyball
Beach volleyball has the shortest season on my list. Weather is an important factor for this sport, so it is only played during the hottest months of the year. Thus, most players consider wearing beach volleyball sunglasses. You can tune into the beach volleyball season from May through August.
College Volleyball
The season of college volleyball is based around the academic school year to accommodate student athletes. You can expect college volleyball season for women to start sometime in August and last through December. For men, the college volleyball season lasts January through April.
High School Volleyball
Similar to the college volleyball season, high school volleyball is based on the academic calendar. The women’s and men’s teams play for the duration of fall and spring semester respectively.
Women play in the first semester from August to November, and men play in the second semester from March to May. These seasons are slightly shorter than college or professional volleyball. As a result, many high school athletes add club volleyball for their off season.
Club Volleyball
Club volleyball offers an alternative to high school and college volleyball. It is most common among high schoolers from small schools that do not have the most robust school teams to play on. In all, this type of volleyball has been growing in popularity in the United States for the last 20 years.
Club volleyball goes almost year round from September through May. This is the most common season of club volleyball, though individual leagues will sometimes have slightly different start and end dates.
Snow Volleyball
Snow Volleyball has gained popularity in recent years. In 2011, FIVB officially recognized snow volleyball as a sport enjoyed by more than 55 nationalities. Similar to beach volleyball, this version of the game adds a battle with elements, although it is much frostier.
This sport starts during the dead of winter and continues most of the year. You can play competitive snow volleyball from December to August every year.
Related Questions
What Season Is Men’s Volleyball?
Men’s volleyball happens in the spring semester for college and high school. In high school the season is from March until May, and in college men’s season is January through May.
How Long Is a Professional Volleyball Season?
A professional volleyball season averages 9 months, depending on the league. There are lots of different professional leagues and they all have different seasons.
How Long Does a Volleyball Season Go For?
Season length varies based on the league of volleyball being played, but on average a volleyball season lasts about 4 months. In high school and college, women play for most of the fall semester of school, while men play for most of the spring semester.
Conclusion
Volleyball is around all year with the various seasons that leagues play in. Most seasons last approximately four months. During summertime beach and international volleyball is occurring, and the fall and spring have school volleyball.
