The volleyball rules are set by the world federation FIVB. The current version of the rules was established at the 35th FIVB Congress in 2016 and has been in force since 2017.
Field
The pitch is 18 m long and 9 m wide. It is divided into two halves by the centre line and the net, so that each team plays on one half of the 9m by 9m pitch. Three metres from the net is another line delineating the attacking zone. To the left and right are the sidelines and at the far end is the baseline. All lines of a volleyball court are 5 cm wide each and belong to the playing field.
The net hangs above the centre line. The top edge is 2.43 m above the floor for men, 2.24 m for women and 2.35 m for mixed. The net must be taut. It is itself one metre high and 9.5 to 10 metres wide, so that it projects 25 to 50 cm beyond the side lines of the court on each side. The square meshes of the net have a side length of 10 cm and its edges are bordered with bands. The ends of the net are attached to posts 0.5 to 1 m outside the field. Antennas are attached above the sidelines on both sides of the net. These 80 cm high flexible poles delimit the area within which the ball must be played over the net.
The playing field is surrounded on all sides by a free zone at least three metres wide, in which the ball may also be played. Above the court and the free zone there shall be a space of at least seven metres (at least 12.5 metres for international competition) free from obstructions. Behind the entire length of the baseline is the service zone, where the serve is taken.
At both ends of the net are the referees. Behind the second referee is the scribes' table (for more information on these people, see the section on "Refereeing"). Next to the scribe's table are the benches where the coaches and other team members sit. Substitute players can sit in a 3 by 3 m area in the corners next to the benches.
In competitive play, the volleyball associations in the lower leagues make fewer demands on the spatial dimensions due to the limited possibilities of many smaller clubs.
Ball
→ Main article: Volleyball (sports equipment)
The volleyball is made of leather or plastic with an air-filled rubber bladder inside. With a circumference of 65 to 67 cm and a weight of 260 to 280 grams, it is smaller and lighter than a basketball or a football. It is either brightly coloured or has a pattern of different colours. The internal pressure (overpressure) must be between 294.3 and 318.82 mbar.
The brand of the match balls is determined by the national volleyball federations for their area of responsibility. In the international field, there are several approved match balls, which differ in minor details regarding colour and material composition. The general principles regarding circumference and weight are the same for all balls.
Team
The squad of a volleyball team usually consists of twelve players, sometimes more. There is room on the score sheet for fourteen players per team. Six players are on the field at a time. The six players in the starting line-up are also known as the Starting Six. The players of a team wear the same jerseys. An exception is the libero, for whom some special rules apply (see below). One player is appointed captain of the team. After a rule change, from the beginning of 2022, the libero will also be allowed to hold this position. The captain not only leads his teammates, but is also responsible for communication with the referee and formalities such as signing the match report. In addition to supervising his team, the coach is responsible for the line-up, substitutions and time-outs, among other things. He is often assisted in his work by a co-trainer. Other officials who may sit on the bench during the match are the team doctor and the physiotherapist.
Rotation
The starting line-up of the team determines the rotation order of the players on the field (see graphic), which is valid for the duration of the respective set. The positions are numbered from the back right counterclockwise from 1 to 6. The players in positions 2, 3 and 4 are in the front zone, the others in the back zone. If a team gets the right to serve, its players rotate one position clockwise. This means, for example, that the player who was previously at position 2 at the net now moves to position 1 and becomes the server for his team. The team maintains these positions until they regain the lost serving right. Players in the front zone must always have their feet closer to the net than their counterparts in the back zone at the start of a ball change, and adjacent players must also be in the correct order. Once the ball is in play, they are free to move around the court and arrange themselves according to the tactical alignment.
Game
After the ball is put into play with the serve, each team is allowed up to three contacts with the ball before the ball must cross the net. In a typical rally, the three ball contacts are used for three components of a move. The first contact is the reception, which is used to control the ball on the defensive end. The pass (second contact) brings the ball near the net. The third contact is usually the attacking shot over the net. The other team can now try to repel the attack by blocking directly at the net. If the ball then enters the defending team's half, play continues. The block contact is not counted in the three ball contacts allowed per turn. If no block is used or if no direct block point is achieved, the team with its three ball contacts sets up a new attack.
Error
A team scores a point when it strikes the ball on the ground in the opponent's half of the court or when the opponent makes a mistake. The following errors are possible:
- Ball out: The ball falls to the ground without hitting the opponent's field. The line belongs to the field.
- Four contacts: A team touches the ball more than three times in a row. A contact in the block is not counted. This also applies to multiple block touches by one or more players. The next touch after a block may also be by a player who touched the ball immediately before in the blocking action. Except for the serve, the ball may be touched with the entire body.
- Double touch: A player touches the ball twice in direct succession. Exceptions: After the block, the same player may make the first contact with the ball and when receiving, the ball may touch several parts of the receiving player's body at the same time or in immediate succession. In practice, double contact is usually determined by the rotation of the ball.
- Ball guided: A player holds or throws the ball instead of hitting it.
- Net touch: A player touches the net. Between 2009 and 2015 there was a more liberal interpretation of this rule, according to which a net touch was only considered a fault if it affected the game.
- Fault on serve: The ball does not cross the net in the full diameter between the antennas or their imaginary extension to the hall ceiling. If a served ball touches the edge of the net when crossing the net, this is not considered a fault according to the current rules. In addition, the serving player may not take more than eight seconds for this action and he must serve before it touches the court. The opponent may not block the serve or return the ball directly while in the front zone and completely above the top of the net.
- Overreach: a player reaches over the net. Exceptions: When on the attacking stroke, contact with the ball still takes place in one's own playing area; on the block, if the opponent's build-up of play is not impeded.
- Overstepping: A player steps over the center line below the net. The player's foot touches the field of play, the sole of the foot is completely in the opponent's playing area. There does not have to be an obstruction of the opponent.
- Penetrating the opponent's space: The player penetrates the opponent's space, obstructing the opponent in the process.
- Contact with uninvolved persons or objects: The ball touches a player, coach, spectator not in play or an object outside the court. This includes the net equipment outside the antennas, the antennas themselves, and the ceiling of the hall.
- Use of aids during the stroke: A player may neither be assisted by a teammate during the stroke (e.g. take it on the shoulders) nor use any other aid (e.g. jump off the bench).
- Errors by back players: Players from the back positions block in the attacking zone. If the libero plays the ball from the front zone in the top pass, no player may play an attacking shot above the net. Back players may only play attacking shots from above the edge of the net when standing in the back zone, or jump up from the back zone. Liberos may not play any attacking strokes from above the edge of the net. The mere attempt of a block or an attack is not a fault.
- Positional error: A team must be set up according to the rotation order at the beginning of each service (see above). Whether a team is set up correctly is determined solely by the position of its players relative to each other. In addition, players are not permitted to leave the court beyond the sidelines before serving.
- Line of sight block: If one or more players stand (or move) in such a way that the opponent is not able to see the serving player and the trajectory of the ball, this is a prohibited line of sight block. Therefore, if players block the view of the person serving, the ball may not be served over those players.
Video Evidence (Challenge)
In some international competitions of the FIVB and CEV as well as in the final of the DVV Cup, video evidence has been used since 2013, also known as "challenge". If a team doubts a decision of the referee, it can have it reviewed. A challenge is possible for the question ball in the field or out as well as for block touches, net errors, antenna touches and for overruns. It must be shown immediately after the occurrence of the respective error. Each team has at least two opportunities per set to request video evidence. If it has rightly appealed, it gets another chance.
Counting method
In volleyball, the team that wins a move scores a point ("rally point system"). If the serving team commits an error, the other team receives both a point and the right to serve. Their players change positions according to the rotation order. The serving player is then the player who is in position 1 after the rotation.
A set is won when a team reaches 25 points and has at least a two-point lead. If a team does not have such a lead when it reaches 25 points, the set is extended until one team has earned a two-point lead (i.e., at least until 26:24).
To win a match, a team must win three sets ("best of five"). After each set there is a change of sides. There is a three-minute break between sets (possibly a ten-minute break after the second set). The fifth set is called a tiebreak and ends when one team reaches 15 points (with at least a two-point lead). Once a team reaches eight points, the teams switch sides.
Before the first set and again before any fifth set, the referee tosses a coin. The captain who wins the draw may choose to serve or not, or to serve on one side of the court, while the other captain makes the other decision.
In the European Cup competitions, there is an additional deciding set, the "Golden Set", which ensures a decision if each team has recorded a victory after the first and second legs.
The rally point system was introduced in 1999 to better control the duration of a match, making it more enjoyable for spectators and more beneficial for broadcasters. Previously, only the serving team could score a point. Before the rule changes, counting up to 15 points basically applied to all sets, with the first four sets being decided at the latest - that is, regardless of the lead - when one of the two teams reached 17 points. The fifth set was played to 15 points, with the set not being over until the team was two points ahead.
Time outs and substitutions
When the leading team reaches the eighth or sixteenth point, the rules provide for a one-minute technical timeout in the first four sets. In addition, both coaches may request two time-outs, each lasting 30 seconds, from the second referee per set. In the lower divisions there are usually no technical time-outs.
With the tactical time-outs the coach can influence the game. The possible reasons for such a time-out are manifold. The coach can take a time-out to calm down his team in a bad phase. He can try to give new instructions to the team, although the receptivity is limited in the short time. In addition, a timeout can be used to interrupt the flow of play in the opponent. For example, if an opposing player has hit several serves well in a row, the interruption may break his concentration.
Six substitutions are allowed per set and team. The substitute usually holds a board with the number of the player to be substituted. Multiple substitutions are also possible, where several players are substituted at the same time. Once a player has been substituted for another, he can only be substituted for that player again (return substitution). After that, the substitution quota for these two players is exhausted in this set, with the consequence that the starting player must finish the set and the substitute player must sit on the bench until the next set. He may also not be substituted for another starting player after his substitution. Regardless of these rules, the libero may be substituted in and out of the three back positions as often as desired. An exception to these rules exists in the event that a player in play is injured and cannot continue to play.
Sanctions
For "simple" rule violations (disorderly conduct), a verbal warning is given first. For further misconduct, the team of the player who committed the rule violation is formally cautioned with a yellow card. With a red card, the referee indicates a punishment. In this case, the opponent receives an additional point and the right to serve. A yellow-red card means that the player concerned is sent off (cards in one hand) or disqualified (cards in two hands). The suspension is valid for the current set, the disqualification for the entire match. In both cases, the player must be replaced immediately by a regular substitution. If the substitution is not possible, the team is declared incomplete and the opposing team wins the set. After a rule change, a disqualified player can be replaced by another player from the beginning of 2022, regardless of previous substitutions.
Until a rule change in 2013, the meanings of cards and referee signs were defined differently. At that time, a yellow card was considered a sanction that was associated with a point for the opponent, the red card caused the suspension of a player and the yellow-red card, shown together in one hand, caused disqualification.
Points and tables
In tables of national and international tournaments the number of wins, the resulting points, the sets played and the ball points are considered. Ball points are the points played within a set. For example, a team that wins a match 25:20, 25:22, 25:23 has a value of 75:65. The quotient of these numbers (75:65 = 1.154) is called the ball point quotient (BPQ).
In international competitions, in the leagues of the leading volleyball nations and (since the 2013/14 season) also in all German leagues, the three-point rule applies. A team that wins 3:0 or 3:1 receives three points, while the loser goes home empty-handed. In a match that ends 3:2 after a deciding set, there are two points for the winner and one for the loser.
