RULES AND VIOLATIONS IN PLAYING VOLLEYBALL

1. A team consists of 6 players. You must play with at least 5

players, 2 of which must be women. Never more than three
men on the court at a time.
2. It is considered a forfeit for your team if you have less than 5
players. You are welcome to play an “exhibition” game, but it
will count as a loss in the standings. (Even if the other team
agrees to allow you to play with 4 players, Flannagan’s will
recognize the game as a loss).
3. Each member of the team shall serve in turn, (rotating
clockwise).
4. Teams will volley for first serve. The team winning the volley
will serve the first game. The team that loses serves the
following game.
5. The server shall stand with both feet behind the rear
boundary line and may not step on or over the boundary line
until after the serve has been hit.
6. If a player touches the ball or the ball touches a player,
he/she is considered as having played the ball, (exception: a
block is not considered a hit). Each team may hit the ball 3
times before the ball is hit to the opposing team.
7. Players are not permitted to scoop, hold, or lift the ball.
Players may not touch the net.
8. Players are not permitted to spike the ball on the serve.
Players aren’t allowed to come from back to front to spike.
9. It is legal to contact the ball with any part of the body above
the knee as long as the ball rebounds immediately and does not
“lie” against the body. Kicking is not permitted.
10. It is permissible to run out of bounds and play a ball before
it contacts an object out of bounds. Once it hits an object out of
bounds it is a dead ball.
11. When a ball touches a boundary line, it is considered good.
12. A ball touching the body more than once in succession is
considered a double hit and is illegal except when blocking or
on a hard driven spike.
13. A ball hit into the net by a team may still be kept in play
provided the net isn’t touched by the players or it is not the
third hit.
14. A ball is still in play if it hits the net and goes over into the
opponent’s court during the volley and the serve.
15. If 2 players contact the ball simultaneously, it counts as one
hit and either player may play the next hit.
16. A spiker must contact the ball on his/her side but may in the
course of the follow through cross over, but not touch, the net.
A player may never cross the plain of the net while blocking.
17. Fifteen points wins the match. Teams must win by 2 points
with a 21-point cap. Games will be best of 3 or 1-hour
MAXIMUM matches.
18. Substitutions may be made during the game into the server
position only. Males must sub for males and the same for
women. **Please refrain from utilizing “ringers” for tournament
play.
19. Players may cross the center-line below the net during play
provided that this does not interfere with the opponent’s play.
20. Players are not permitted to walk on the court while
another game is taking place. If a game is running late, you may
ask the team how much time they have left. If you feel it is
running unreasonably late, please find a volleyball coordinator
and he/she will address the issue.
21. All team names should be fun and good sports. Flannagan’s
has the right to ask any team to change names should we feel it
is inappropriate.
22. Flannagan’s volleyball coordinators have the authority to
make any/all final decisions regarding anything questionable
and/or not covered in this packet.
HISTORY OF VOLLEYBALL
The game of volleyball, originally called “mintonette,” was
invented in 1895 by William G. Morgan after the invention of
basketball only four years before. Morgan, a graduate of the
Springfield College of the YMCA, designed the game to be a
combination of basketball, baseball, tennis, and handball.
The first volleyball net, borrowed from tennis, was only 6’6″
high (though you need to remember that the average American
was shorter in the nineteenth century).
The offensive style of setting and spiking was first demonstrated
in the Philippines in 1916. Over the years that followed, it
became clear that standard rules were needed for tournament
play, and thus the USVBA (United States Volleyball Association)
was formed in 1928.
Latest Volleyball News from the NCAA and NAIA.
Two years later, the first two-man beach volleyball game was
played, though the professional side of the sport did not
emerge until much later. Not surprisingly, the first beach
volleyball association appeared in California (1965), and the
professional players united under the auspices of the AVP
(American Volleyball Professionals) in 1983.
During the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, American men and
women took gold and silver medals in indoor volleyball
competitions. Four years later at the Olympics in Korea, the
men once again scored gold. Starting in 1996, two-man beach
volleyball was officially introduced to the Olympics. Today, there
are more than 800 million volleyball players worldwide, 46
million of them in the U.S.
Timeline of Significant Volleyball Events
In 1900, a special ball was designed for the sport.
In 1916, in the Philippines, an offensive style of passing the ball
in a high trajectory to be struck by another player (the set and
spike) were introduced.
In 1917, the game was changed from 21 to 15 points.
In 1920, three hits per side and back row attack rules were
instituted.
In 1922, the first YMCA national championships were held in
Brooklyn, NY. Twenty-seven teams from 11 states were
represented.
In 1928, it became clear that tournaments and rules were
needed, so the United States Volleyball Association (USVBA,
now USA Volleyball) was formed. The first U.S. Open was
staged, as the field was open to non-YMCA squads.
In 1930, the first two-man beach game was played.

In 1934, national volleyball referees were approved and

recognized.
In 1937, at the AAU convention in Boston, action was taken to
recognize the U.S. Volleyball Association as the official national
governing body in the U.S.
In 1947, the Federation Internationale De Volley-Ball (FIVB) was
founded.
In 1948, the first two-man beach tournament was held.
In 1949, the initial World Championships were held in Prague,
Czechoslovakia.
In 1964, volleyball was introduced to the Olympic Games in
Tokyo.
In 1965, the California Beach Volleyball Association (CBVA) was
formed.
In 1974, the World Championships in Mexico were telecast in
Japan.
In 1975, the U.S. National Women’s team began a year-round
training regime in Pasadena, Texas (moved to Colorado Springs
in 1979, Coto de Caza and Fountain Valley, CA, in 1980, and San
Diego, CA, in 1985).
In 1977, the U.S. National Men’s Team began a year-round
training regime in Dayton, Ohio (moved to San Diego, CA, in
1981).
In 1983, the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) was
formed.
In 1984, the U.S. won their first medals at the Olympics in Los
Angeles. The men won the gold, and the women the silver.
In 1986, the Women’s Professional Volleyball Association
(WPVA) was formed.
In 1988, the U.S. men repeated the gold in the Olympics in
Korea.
In 1990, the World League was created.
In 1995, the sport of volleyball was 100 years old!
In 1996, two-person beach volleyball became an Olympic sport.