The sport of volleyball can be an incredible confidence and character booster for your teen…
Who Invented Volleyball?
Volleyball has been around for over 125 years! Like basketball, volleyball was invented in the United States in a YMCA. William G Morgan is the man who created the sport of Mintonette, today known as volleyball. The sport was created February 9th, 1895 and is a combination of handball, basketball, tennis and baseball and was originally designed as a sport for business men who were looking for a less contact heavy sport than basketball.
Volleyball History
Volleyball was first invented in the United States at a YMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts by a man named William G. Morgan. This was in the year 1895 and the sport was originally named Mintonette. Inspiration for the sport came from a combination of tennis, basketball, baseball and handball.
Soon after a fan watching a game proclaimed that a more appropriate name for the sport would be volleyball as the teams seemed to volley back and forth over the net. This spectator was a professor at a neighboring college in the state, he proposed the name “volleyball” and it stuck. The first official rules for the sport were printed a few years later in the YMCA’s rule book in 1897.
Though volleyball was invented in the USA it only just recently got to be as popular in North America and The United States as it is in the rest of the world. There are over 46 million people in the United States who play the sport of volleyball regularly. In comparison over 800 million people around the world play the sport on a weekly basis.
What Year Was Volleyball Invented?
Volleyball was invented February 9th, 1895 by a man in a Massachusetts YMCA. William G. Morgan was looking for a sport for businessman who didn’t want to play a contact sport. Concepts for volleyball were taken from multiple other sports including basketball, tennis, handball, and baseball. At the time volleyballs themselves didn’t exist and the first game was played with
Timeline Of Volleyball
Let’s break down the history of volleyball and some of the biggest events over the last decade and a half. The sport has changed quite a bit since it was invented over 125 years ago. Here are some main events that led to the popularity of the sport
1895- The sport of Mintonette was invented in the United States
1896- The sport is renamed volleyball
1900- The first volleyball was invented exclusively for the sport
1916- Variations of the set and hit were added to the game
1920- Beach Volleyball is invented in California
1920- Rules were amended to three hits per side and back row attacking
1928- USAV was formed to facilitate rules
1948- The first beach volleyball tournament with 2 player teams was held
1949- The first ever world championship was held for volleyball
1964- Indoor volleyball was added to the Olympic Games
1978- The AVP was created
1996- 2 player beach volleyball was added as an Olympic sport
2001- rules ammended did away with side out scoring replacing it with rally
2020- Today volleyball is 125 years old and is one of the fastest growing sports in the world. It is currently the 3rd most popular sport in the world and boys volleyball is the fastest growing sport in North America.
How Many People Play Volleyball In The World?
Today over 800 million people play the sport of volleyball across the world!
What Countries Is Volleyball Played In?
Volleyball is played in all 195 countries in the world! Top places where volleyball is popular include Brazil, Russia, Poland, The United States of America, France, Italy, Germany and Japan. Volleyball is played in every country in the world! Check out our complete list of popular volleyball countries below.
Where Are The Best Volleyball Teams In The World
Currently the best teams in the world as ranked by the FIVB are Brazil, Poland, Russia, France and USA. These teams have all been dominant for quite some time and are volleyball power houses in the world. These 5 countries put out some of the best volleyball players in the sport.
| Rank | National Team |
|---|---|
| 1 | Brazil |
| 2 | Poland |
| 3 | Russia |
| 4 | France |
| 5 | USA |
| 6 | Slovenia |
| 7 | Serbia |
| 8 | Argentina |
| 9 | Italy |
| 10 | Canada |
| 11 | Japan |
| 12 | Iran |
| 13 | Cuba |
| 14 | Germany |
| 15 | Netherlands |
| 16 | Tunisia |
| 17 | Egypt |
| 18 | Bulgaria |
| 19 | Korea |
| 20 | Belgium |
Where Did Volleyball Originally Come From?
Volleyball was originally invented in a YMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts by an employee looking to give business professionals a less contact heavy sport to play. Many were complaining about how rough of a sport basketball could be and were seeking an alternative. Volleyball, originally known as Mitonette, took elements from tennis, basketball, baseball and handball yielding a unique new sport.
