Volleyball world championship

The volleyball world championships are tournaments organized by the world volleyball association FIVB to determine the world champion of women and men.

Regulations

The rules of the volleyball world championship were adapted several times to the respective number of participants. The current version contains the following rules.

• 24 teams take part in the tournament.
• The qualification takes around two years.
• Hosts and defending champions are automatically qualified.
• The number of participants in a continental association is determined by the FIVB. Europe usually has the most, Africa and South America the fewest.
• In order to qualify for the World Cup, a team must survive several tournaments, depending on their position in the FIVB world rankings. The worst-placed teams play up to three rounds.
• The competition is divided into at least two phases: a preliminary round and a final round. Depending on the number of participants, an additional intermediate round is necessary.
• In the preliminary round, the teams are divided into groups. Each participant plays once against each group opponent.
• After the preliminary round, the best teams in each group qualify for the next round. The number depends on the number of participants and the mode used.
• The FIVB used different formats for the final round. Nowadays it is widely agreed that at least the semifinals and finals must be played in the Olympic format.
• The quarter-finals can be played in groups or in direct duels. In the latter case, additional rounds may be necessary to reduce the number of participants to eight.
• There are strict restrictions on the tournament. Only 14 players are allowed and subsequent nominations are not allowed even in case of injury.

history

The history of the world championship goes back to the beginnings of volleyball as a professional sport at a high level. One of the first concrete measures taken by the FIVB after it was founded in 1947 was the introduction of an international competition with teams from more than one continent. In 1949 the first men's world championship took place in Prague . This tournament was still limited to Europe . Three years later there was also the first competition for women in 1952. The tournaments were now held every four years. In 1962 there was an interruption of the four-year rhythm because volleyball was included in the program of the Olympic Games in 1964 and the two most important competitions in this sport should not overlap. Meanwhile teams from Asia and America also played . In 1970 the Africans were added, which meant that the original goal of having members of all continental associations at the World Cup was achieved.

Until 1974 the respective host country organized the world championship for both men and women. There was only an exception in 1966/1967 when the tournaments took place in different years. Since then, this practice has only existed in exceptional cases, namely in 1998 and 2006, both in Japan .

The number of participants has changed again and again over the years. Parallel to the popularity of volleyball, the number rose to 20 teams in the 1970s and parts of the 1980s. In the 1990s, the field of participants was reduced to 16 teams. 24 teams have taken part in the World Cup since 2002. The world championship is not only the oldest but also the most important event of the FIVB. It is only surpassed in prestige by the Olympic Games .

Men

The World Cup shows how much volleyball was initially dominated by European teams.

The Soviet Union won the first two tournaments. In 1956 the two-time finalist from Czechoslovakia was successful. In the following two world championships, the USSR dominated the ČSSR again, before the competitor secured victory for the second time in 1966.

In 1970 the GDR won its only title in the final against Bulgaria . Poland defeated its large eastern neighbor in 1974, but then the Soviet Union won two tournaments in a row for the third time.

After the Olympic boycotts in 1980 and 1984, the first confrontation between the eastern superpower and the emerging USA took place in 1986 . As at the following Summer Games in Seoul , the Americans won under the leadership of Charles Kiraly and Steve Timmons .

In the 1990s, the Italians dominated, winning all three tournaments in that decade (1990, 1994, 1998). Outstanding players were Lorenzo Bernardi and Andrea Giani . In 2002, however, they had to admit defeat to Nalbert's Brazilians . The South Americans triumphed in Argentina , where they had already been in the final in 1982. Brazil defended the title at the 2006 World Cup in Japan .

At 17 world championships so far, European teams have won 13 times, while only four titles have gone to the teams from the American continent (USA and Brazil).

Tournaments

	year	host	gold	silver	bronze
1	1949	Prague	Soviet Union	Czechoslovakia	Bulgaria
2	1952	Moscow	Soviet Union	Czechoslovakia	Bulgaria
3	1956	Paris	Czechoslovakia	Romania	Soviet Union
4th	1960	Brazil	Soviet Union	Czechoslovakia	Romania
5	1962	Soviet Union	Soviet Union	Czechoslovakia	Romania
6th	1966	Czechoslovakia	Czechoslovakia	Romania	Soviet Union
7th	1970	Bulgaria	GDR	Bulgaria	Japan
8th	1974	Mexico	Poland	Soviet Union	Japan
9	1978	Italy	Soviet Union	Italy	Cuba
10	1982	Argentina	Soviet Union	Brazil	Argentina
11	1986	France	United States	Soviet Union	Bulgaria
12	1990	Brazil	Italy	Cuba	Soviet Union
13	1994	Greece	Italy	Netherlands	United States
14th	1998	Japan	Italy	BR Yugoslavia	Cuba
15th	2002	Argentina	Brazil	Russia	France
16	2006	Japan	Brazil	Poland	Bulgaria
17th	2010	Italy	Brazil	Cuba	Serbia
18th	2014	Poland	Poland	Brazil	Germany
19th	2018	Italy / Bulgaria	Poland	Brazil	United States
20th	2022	Russia

Medal table

As of October 1, 2018

nation	gold	silver	bronze	total
Russia 1	6th	3	3	12
Brazil	3	3	0	6th
Italy	3	1	0	4th
Poland	3	1	0	4th
Czech Republic 2	2	4th	0	6th
United States	1	0	2	3
Germany 3	1	0	1	2
Romania	0	2	2	4th
Cuba	0	2	2	4th
Bulgaria	0	1	4th	5
Serbia 4	0	1	1	2
Netherlands	0	1	0	1
Japan	0	0	2	2
Argentina	0	0	1	1
France	0	0	1	1
1 1949 to 1990 Soviet Union 2 1949 to 1990 Czechoslovakia 3 1949 to 1990 German Democratic Republic & Federal Republic of Germany 4 1949 to 1990 SFR Yugoslavia , 1994 to 2006 Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro

Placements

National team	TN	1949	1952	1956	1960	1962	1966	1970	1974	1978	1982	1986	1990	1994	1998	2002	2006	2010	2014	2018
Egypt	9								17th	23		14th			19th	19th	21st	13	21st	17th
Albania	1					16
Algeria	2													13	19th
Argentina	12				11					22nd	3	7th	6th	13	11	6th	13	9	11	13
Australia	7th										22nd				17th	19th	21st	19th	15th	13
Belgium	8th	9		17th			14th	8th	11	18th									17th	7th
Brazil	17th			11	5	10	13	12	9	6th	2	4th	4th	5	4th	1	1	1	2	2
Bulgaria	18th	3	3	5		4th	7th	2	7th	10	5	3	5	9	7th	13	3	7th	13	9
Chile	1										23
People's Republic of China	14th			9		9	9		15th	7th	7th	12		13	15th	13	17th	19th	15th	21st
Denmark	1						22nd
GDR	6th			12		11	4th	1	4th	9
Germany 1	6th						20th				12			9			9	8th	3
Dominican Republic	2								22nd											21st
Finland	8th		11			18th	19th	20th		17th	17th								9	13
France	16	6th	6th	7th	9		18th	17th	16	15th	16	6th	8th			3	6th	11	4th	9
Greece	5											13		6th	13	7th	17th
Guinea	1							24
India	1		8th
Iraq	1										10
Iran	6th							21st							19th		21st	19th	6th	13
Israel	4th		10	16		15th		19th
Italy	17th	8th		14th		14th	16	15th	19th	2	14th	11	1	1	1	5	5	4th	13	5
Japan	15th				8th	5	5	3	3	11	4th	10	11	9	15th	9	8th	13		17th
Cameroon	4th												15th					13	21st	17th
Canada	11								20th	20th	11		12	9	12	17th	11	19th	7th	7th
Kazakhstan	2															19th	21st
Croatia	1															19th
Cuba	15th			19th			17th	13	8th	3	10	5	2	4th	3	19th	15th	2	11	17th
Lebanon	1		9
Libya	1										24
Mexico	5								10	12	18th							13	17th
Mongolia	3					17th	21st	16
Netherlands	12	10		13		12	12	14th	12	16			7th	2	6th	9				9
North Korea	2					13		9
Austria	2			20th		19th
Panama	1								24
Paraguay	1				12
Peru	1				14th
Poland	17th	4th	7th	4th	4th	6th	6th	5	1	8th	6th	9			17th	9	2	13	1	1
Portugal	2			15th												8th
Puerto Rico	6th								23		15th						12	13	21st	21st
Romania	9	5	4th	2	3	3	2	7th	6th	13
Russia 2	19th	1	1	3	1	1	3	6th	2	1	1	2	3	7th	5	2	7th	5	5	5
Sweden	2												10	13
Serbia 3	10			10		8th	8th	10							2	4th	4th	3	9	4th
Slovenia	1																			9
Spain	3														8th	13		12
South Korea	9			18th					13	4th	8th		14th	8th	13		17th		17th
Taiwan	1											15th
Thailand	1														19th
Czech Republic 4	16	2	2	1	2	2	1	4th	5	5	9	8th	9		19th	13	13	10
Tunisia	9							22nd	18th	24	21st					19th	15th	19th	21st	21st
Turkey	2						15th								19th
Ukraine	1														10
Hungary	8th	7th	5	8th	6th	7th	10	11		14th
Uruguay	1				13
United States	16			6th	7th		11	18th	14th	19th	13	1	13	3	9	9	10	6th	7th	3
Venezuela	11				10			23	21st	21st	19th	16	16			17th	17th	19th	19th
TN = participations (1949 to 2018); Hosts marked in bold
1 1949 to 1990 Federal Republic of Germany 2 1949 to 1990 Soviet Union 3 1949 to 1990 SFR Yugoslavia , 1994 to 2006 Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro 4 1949 to 1990 Czechoslovakia

Women

So far, seven national teams have been able to enter the winners' lists for women. The Soviet Union / Russia , Japan , China and Cuba dominated the competition before Italy was able to prevail for the first time in 2002 . In 2006 and 2010 the Russians won, each just barely in the final against Brazil . In 2014, the USA won the title for the first time. In a purely European final, Serbia won the title for the first time in 2018 after beating Italy in the final .

The women from the Soviet Union won the first three tournaments. Given the home advantage in Moscow , the way seemed clear for another success in 1962, but eventually the previous finalist Japan was able to end the hosts' triumphant advance. The Asians repeated their success in 1967 at home in the absence of a major competitor. The two teams met again in 1970 and this time the Soviet Union prevailed. At the following tournament Japan got the upper hand again.

In 1978 a young team from Cuba surprised the world and left their longstanding rivals behind. The Caribbean women won their first major volleyball title for a team outside of Europe and Asia. At the beginning of the 1980s, a new team from Asia prevailed. China won the World Cup in 1982 and 1986. Four years later they were in the final again, but had to admit defeat to the Soviet Union when they last participated.

After the surprise victory in 1978, Cuba developed an aggressive style of play that they used to dominate the 1990s. Led by Regla Torres , Mireya Luis and Regla Bell , they won the World Cup in 1994 and 1998. In doing so, they left the established competitors and the newcomers from Brazil behind.

In 2002 China could not live up to its role as favorites and lost to Italy in the semi-finals. The Europeans defeated the USA in the final. In Japan, the defending champion was dethroned four years later by the new world champion Russia and only finished fourth behind Brazil, Serbia and Montenegro . The Russians became world champions for the first time after the end of the Soviet Union and after three bronze medals in a row. In 2010 the Russians were able to successfully defend the title (again in the final against Brazil).

Tournaments

	year	host	gold	silver	bronze
1	1952	Moscow	Soviet Union	Poland	Czechoslovakia
2	1956	Paris	Soviet Union	Romania	Poland
3	1960	Brazil	Soviet Union	Japan	Czechoslovakia
4th	1962	Soviet Union	Japan	Soviet Union	Poland
5	1967	Tokyo	Japan	United States	South Korea
6th	1970	Bulgaria	Soviet Union	Japan	North Korea
7th	1974	Mexico	Japan	Soviet Union	South Korea
8th	1978	Soviet Union	Cuba	Japan	Soviet Union
9	1982	Peru	People's Republic of China	Peru	United States
10	1986	Czechoslovakia	People's Republic of China	Cuba	Peru
11	1990	China	Soviet Union	People's Republic of China	United States
12	1994	Brazil	Cuba	Brazil	Russia
13	1998	Japan	Cuba	People's Republic of China	Russia
14th	2002	Germany	Italy	United States	Russia
15th	2006	Japan	Russia	Brazil	Serbia and Montenegro
16	2010	Japan	Russia	Brazil	Japan
17th	2014	Italy	United States	People's Republic of China	Brazil
18th	2018	Japan	Serbia	Italy	People's Republic of China

Medal table

Status: October 21, 2018

nation	gold	silver	bronze	total
Russia 1	7th	2	4th	13
Japan	3	3	1	7th
Cuba	3	1	0	4th
People's Republic of China	2	3	1	6th
United States	1	2	2	5
Italy	1	1	0	2
Serbia 3	1	0	1	2
Brazil	0	3	1	4th
Poland	0	1	2	3
Peru	0	1	1	2
Romania	0	1	0	1
South Korea	0	0	2	2
Czech Republic 2	0	0	2	2
North Korea	0	0	1	1
1 1949 to 1990 Soviet Union 2 1949 to 1990 Czechoslovakia 3 1952 to 1990 SFR Yugoslavia , 1994 to 2006 BR Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro

Placements

National team	TN	1952	1956	1960	1962	1967	1970	1974	1978	1982	1986	1990	1994	1998	2002	2006	2010	2014	2018
Egypt	3											16			21st	21st
Algeria	1																21st
Argentina	6th			8th						18th		15th			17th			17th	19th
Azerbaijan	4th												9			13		15th	15th
Australia	2									12					21st
Bahamas	1							23
Belgium	3		13						22nd									11
Brazil	16		11	5	8th		13	15th	7th	8th	5	7th	2	4th	7th	2	2	3	7th
Bulgaria	12	4th	5		4th		6th	13	9	9	12			11	8th			11	12
Chile	1									22nd
People's Republic of China	14th		6th		9			14th	6th	1	1	2	8th	2	4th	5	10	2	3
Costa Rica	2															17th	17th
GDR	7th		7th		7th		10	4th	8th		4th	12
Germany 1	15th		16	10	13			19th	18th	14th	13	13	5	13	9	11	7th	9	11
Dominican Republic	8th							21st	19th					11	13	17th	17th	5	9
Finland	1								21st
France	1	7th	12					20th
Greece	1														9
India	1	8th
Indonesia	1									21st
Israel	1		14th
Italy	11								20th	15th	9	10	13	5	1	4th	5	4th	2
Japan	16			2	1	1	2	1	2	4th	7th	8th	7th	8th	13	6th	3	7th	6th
Cameroon	3															21st		21st	21st
Canada	9							11	14th	11	15th	14th			17th		21st	17th	18th
Kazakhstan	4th															17th	21st	15th	24
Kenya	6th												13	13	21st	21st	21st		20th
Croatia	3													6th			17th	13
Cuba	12						8th	7th	1	5	2	4th	1	1	5	7th	12	21st	22nd
Luxembourg	1		17th
Mexico	8th						12	10	15th	13					21st	21st		21st	16
Mongolia	1						16
Netherlands	14th		10		12		14th	16	17th	16		9	9	7th	9	8th	11	13	4th
Nigeria	1									23
North Korea	4th		8th		10		3				14th
Austria	2		15th		14th
Paraguay	1									9
Peru	12			7th		4th	15th	8th	10	2	3	6th	13	9		17th	15th
Philippines	1							18th
Poland	10	2	3	4th	3		9	9	11						13	15th	9
Puerto Rico	7th							22nd		17th					9	15th	17th	17th	14th
Romania	7th	5	2		5		7th	5					13		13
Russia 2	17th	1	1	1	2		1	2	3	6th	6th	1	3	3	3	1	1	5	8th
Serbia 3	5								16							3	8th	7th	1
Spain	1									20th
South Korea	12					3		3	4th	7th	8th	5	4th	9	6th	13	13		17th
Taiwan	2											11				12
Thailand	5													13	17th		13	17th	13
Trinidad and Tobago	1																		23
Czech Republic	11	3	4th	3	6th		5	17th	12		11		9		17th		15th
Tunisia	3								23		16							21st
Turkey	4th															10	6th	9	10
Ukraine	1												9
Hungary	6th	6th			11		4th	6th	13	10
Uruguay	1			9
United States	16		9	6th		2	11	12	5	3	10	3	6th	13	2	9	4th	1	5
TN = participations (1952 to 2018); Hosts marked in bold
1 1952 to 1990 Federal Republic of Germany 2 1952 to 1990 Soviet Union 3 1952 to 1990 SFR Yugoslavia , 1994 to 2006 Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro 4 1952 to 1990 Czechoslovakia

Web links

• Information from the FIVB (English)
• Information from the DVV
• Special for the 2014 Women's World Cup on volleyballer.de
• Special for the Men's World Cup 2014 on volleyballer.de
• Information from the FIVB about the Women's World Cup 2014 (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Russia to host 2022 FIVB Men's World Championship. CEV , November 15, 2018, accessed on November 15, 2018 .